Fiction – Year V – Number 40 – September 2020

BAD COFFEE By: Alicia Young             Kira twirled her index finger repeatedly around the metal utensil submerged in her caramel latte. She despised the waiting game as much as she despised the beverage, but she remained...

The Kiss Kayla wanted to kiss a man at 12:45 a.m. under the midnight sun during the finale of the fireworks display in Eagle River, Alaska. That was her goal. “It would be sooooooo romantic,” she...

"LOYALTY" "I don't know what in hell you expect from me," Ross Tanner growled as Ackerman entered his Las Vegas office. "Fifteen minutes of your time, plus a few answers." "C'mon, we both know most of these...

Don't Tell He stands next to my desk and uses this pen with green ink to mark my homework.  I’m so used to the red markings that every other teacher uses, I have to stare...

The Welfare Check Joe Harkness stamped his feet outside of his squad car, trying to knock as much of the grey slush from his boots as he could before sliding in.  It was a futile,...

           LIES  (As Mentiras)   William Torphy      Docento was a master on the pandeiro, the Brazilian tambourine, and was considered the best percussionist in Santa Teresa, one of Rio’s many crowded hillside neighborhoods where music could...

Here she is, then – sitting across him. In the armchair, in front of his desk. Efstathia. And exactly what he was afraid of, is happening. Because, right now, as the daylight collects its last ribbons...

The Unknown Man By: Angelic Hinojosh Mario awoke obstinately, "Today is the day!" he declared. Today he will travel down Main Street to the ice-cream parlor that cozily sat in-between the pizza shop and the insurance...

Holy Sword By Kevin Auker As the summer sun rained down on the kingdom of Scarlet, manning his post as normal was the king’s trusted knight Xavier. His job was simple, to not allow anyone to...

Lone Star Dan Carpenter "You're here with the conference?" the clerk asked as he paid for his inspirational paperback and his Dentyne. "Al-Anon," he replied, trying to meet her lowered blue-green eyes and instinctively bumping up his...