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The Barmaid is a Consummate Artist by Kunal S. Modi Bella watches through table-glass as Yuri executes a point-perfect chasse along the bar. Yuri is never so sad, Bella thinks, as when he is showing-off. He stirs for another performance in front of his potted audience, loudly greeting Bella with the American diminutive 'babe' so they can all hear him. This causes a chuckle to … [Read more...] about The Barmaid is a Consummate Artist by Kunal S. Modi

Short Short StoriesI remember the first day of my first creative writing class. My professor was a very good and very old writer, who I will not name. He started the class, like many writers-turned teachers did back then, with a monologue about about literature. He began giving a history of writing and starting with telling stories around a primitive campfire, went on and … [Read more...] about Short Short Stories

Hanged By Carla J. Dow  The coarse rope scratched against his cheekbones as the noose was forced over his head. It sat heavy on his shoulders like a threat, pressing against the bobbing adam’s apple that danced with fear.His body deflated as the sanity slowly dripped from him like melting ice-cream left too long on a sunlit windowsill. He had always been … [Read more...] about Hanged By Carla J. Dow

"Hi" by Lauren K. Sweeney Nine-oh-eight Glenview Road was the best part of carrying the mail. Ten blocks into my suburban trek, there she'd be, stretched out on a neon towel, sweet and slick as a glazed cruller. I took extra care with her magazines and college brochures, stacking them into a neat pile secured with a rubber band. Usually, she slept through my visits. Or … [Read more...] about “Hi” by Lauren K. Sweeney

An Observation by Logan Roe PositiveNewly furnished and with an air of luxury, the 500-seat Performing Arts Center beautifully echoes the acoustics of the teenage thespians busily dancing across the stage under the steady hand of their choreographer. Brimming with delight, the eager, beaming faces follow the dark-skinned director's hands; her delicate words guiding the … [Read more...] about An Observation by Logan Roe

Think Fast By Doug Elwell “C’mon boy—high time you started earning your keep around here.”I was twelve.The old man led me out to the garage and put a three pound coffee can on the bench in front of me; full of years of old screws, nuts and bolts, had to weigh ten pounds. It was one of the old style cans you opened by winding off a strip of tin around the top with a … [Read more...] about Think Fast By Doug Elwell

  The Fabric of Time by Raymond CothernSummer nights long ago in those streets below the hospital window, trucks with yellow flashing lights from the Louisiana Department of Mosquito Control hiss along slowly, the high whine of the compressors shooting out white spray behind the trucks like seeds from the crooked funnels of harvesters, killing the insects … [Read more...] about The Fabric of Time by Raymond Cothern

Rubber Gloves. And Lysol. by Christopher Taylor Three windows. A hairpiece. Seven eggs. Two loaves of bread. Meat. A dustpan.Never sneeze into pudding.Two buckets. Never mix cleaning agents. A mop. No brooms. Brooms leave scratches. One garbage can for every room. It is simply practical.A wardrobe. A refrigerator with wheels. Two beds. Two bedrooms. One … [Read more...] about Rubber Gloves. And Lysol. by Christopher Taylor

Three-Thirty Sharp by C. Gregory Thompson Three-thirty sharp. A shrieking tea kettle. Over the roof tops if floated. A constant in my life. A stranger’s daily routine. On temporary assignment in London, my American company rented me a flat in the East End. Someone living in one of the buildings out my back window and across the garden took their tea at the same time each … [Read more...] about Three-Thirty Sharp by C. Gregory Thompson

Man at Work by Marijke Hillmann The acrid smells of cigarette butts and stale beer hover above the music blaring from the jukebox and the noisy banter on an early afternoon in the Windhoek pub.An outburst of raucous laughter as the door opens and a pyjama-clad six-plus- footer enters, an IV-device strapped to his arm. The regulars greet him. "You managed to escape the … [Read more...] about Man at Work by Marijke Hillmann

First Date by John Faugno He was attractive in a rugged, older sort of way. I think I heard someone say he was twenty-six. I wore my cutest red top the next day, the one that shows off my chest without being slutty. We talked after class. He flirted perfectly, and when he asked me to have coffee with him I couldn't do anything but say yes. I actually said "sure, whenever." I … [Read more...] about First Date by John Faugno

The White Suit by Marijke Hillmann  992 - A small village in Limpopo Province - South AfricaIn round-eyed wonder Vusi stares at the telegram: “…….bursary application - BSc Mining Engineering……..invited to attend 3-day selection programme in Johannesburg”.The high school certificate with 2 distinctions is safely tucked away underneath his brother’s white … [Read more...] about The White Suit by Marijke Hillmann

Carmel Girl by Julie Quiroz Carmel Girl The doctor was surprised. Looking up from his clipboard, he watched a girl rise from her waiting room chair, the arm of a seated boy gently guiding her as she stood. Without looking at the intake form, the doctor guessed they were fifteen or sixteen.The doctor had worked at the family planning clinic for over a year, but this was … [Read more...] about Carmel Girl by Julie Quiroz

The Taste of 3 A.M. by Mercel Meyers "Sally, all you've got are your tits."I had a talent at being able to say some of the nastiest things appropriate to the individual. The words lacked flavor on my tongue. Her face was taken aback, mouth agape and wide-set eyes in shock at the sudden assault. Somehow the cocktail of defending your best-friend and too much to drink at a … [Read more...] about The Taste of 3 A.M. by Mercel Meyers

  Broken Windows by Marijke Hillmann  It is lunch time in a Johannesburg factory.Kagiso, Gift and Tau are leaning against a wall in the scorching midday sun. Gift looks at a young woman leaving the building. "Who is she?" he asks. Shifting the blade of grass he is chewing on, Kagiso replies: "She is the woman who teaches the foremen and office people … [Read more...] about Broken Windows by Marijke Hillmann

The Ragged-Trousered Misogynist by Sue Roff She came to know a place, a very cheap hotel, where she had no past but was only the present. Sitting on the verandah at night watching mosquitoes immolate themselves in the kerosene lamps. Listening to crickets and frogs and geckos in the garden, watching the night traffic pass. Steamed rice, coffee, cigarettes clove and American, … [Read more...] about The Ragged-Trousered Misogynist by Sue Roff

The Art of Learning by Kristina England  It all started when Jamie dusted off her Encyclopedias.She was in the attic with her seven year old son, John. She stared at the heavy texts and shook her head. Now you could read about Giraffes or Atlas Moths on Wikipedia.“Mom, what are you going to do with all these books?”“Either sell or recycle them.”John … [Read more...] about The Art of Learning by Kristina England

Club by Night by Vicky Hayes We lived in an apartment a quarter of a mile from the heart of the city. Our room was nestled into the back with a decent walk in closet and bathroom. We called the room  "club by day, and night by night." This had nothing to do with partying or any drunken or drugged activities of the sort; rather, the quilt we had put over the window- to avoid … [Read more...] about Club by Night by Vicky Hayes

The Lone Car by Mary Lee  The lone car sits in the deep of the morning, waiting for its owner to return. The car had been parked in this same spot the day before, glistening with the moistness of the morning dew. At 4:00 a.m. the sky still shadows the darkness all around the town, hiding the sins of its citizens.The owner of the car has many sins to hide, this … [Read more...] about The Lone Car by Mary Lee

Late for the Window by Sandra Gould Thompson Carol got on the bus, sat down, and quietly wept.“Is everything okay?” asked the woman next to her. “Is there anything I can do for you, Honey?” Carol looked at the woman, who appeared to be the quintessential “bag lady,” and said, “I just can’t do it anymore. Look at everyone. They use their cell phones, text phones, … [Read more...] about Late for the Window by Sandra Gould Thompson

Jack by Victor A. Gallis The front left wheel of Jack's shopping cart spun in circles, making it hard to push up the incline and over the rough asphalt. He leaned his hip into the left side of the handle, and it went more or less straight. It was time to find a new cart.The house was up ahead, on the right hand side. It was leaning a bit more than the last time he had … [Read more...] about Jack by Victor A. Gallis

Water and Ash by Abigail Russo We eat scrambled eggs around the scratched wood kitchen table, wiping the sleep from our eyes and kneading it from our necks. We slather sunscreen on the babies' puckered faces, we haul the pink-and-white umbrellas out of the garage, we crunch on grapes, we claim no interest in the lives of the celebrities featured in the magazines we devour, we … [Read more...] about Water and Ash by Abigail Russo

Herman Johannesburg – mid nineties. by Marijke Hillmann  Herman, my assistant, enters data on a user-unfriendly computer system.He swears in Tswana.I look up and notice that his complexion seems very dark today and then I look him in the face.His eyes glisten.I shiver – down to the depths of my core.“What’s up, Herman” I ask.“I am sick, … [Read more...] about Herman by Marijke Hillmann

fast, eat by Jon Svec He knew before he entered that the sound was leaking. Fork clanging plate, glass clinking glass, laughter. It travelled under and through the door, into the hallway. It seeped through the walls and spilled off the second story balcony, mixing with the horns and engines below. It got out. It was uncontained. The smells, though, were thicker and easier … [Read more...] about fast, eat by Jon Svec