Locked Out

If I could change one thing, it would be meeting Maxim. The locksmith, a hobbled old man with hunched shoulders and a jaunty cap, nodded in silence as I opened the door. In the late daylight, his shadow stretched into a slender top-hatted thing, spilling a dark pool, protecting me from the sunlight, killing the …

The Anti-Aging Solution

She started finding pomegranate seeds at the doorstep, and knew it was time. Last week it was watercress; the week before, red bell peppers. Frances picked up today’s new bottle of wine red seeds, then closed the apartment door. She padded stiffly into the dining nook of her studio apartment and set the shiny jar …

I Don’t

The bouquet bit Tina’s palms; the sun burned through her veil. At the altar, she remembered the lipstick stain and unfamiliar phone number, discovered in last week’s laundry. “I do,” he said, too lightly. Her mother swooned at her reply. Photo by Shardayyy Photography on Unsplash

A Fresh Take

In my defense, it was a brilliant idea at the time. The old corner store was ready for the wrecking ball, but I looked past the scuffed checkerboard linoleum, ancient green cash register and decades of old convenience store displays.  In my imagination I peeled the large butcher paper signs from the plate glass windows, …