Outside, small, widely spaced flakes fall. A pair of laughing toddlers upholstered in red ski overalls trot stiffly ahead of a woman pushing a stroller. Martin thinks of his twin brothers. Sadly, he no longer remembers their faces.
Snow
Stitches
“Is your concussion making you stupid?” He asked her when, at a party they’d decided to hold, she invited a coworker he particularly disliked. “It must be, because if it wasn’t there’s no way you would have thought it was okay to invite him to my place.” Josiah had her cornered in the kitchen, gesturing the neck of his beer at her.
The Boarding House
The room was advertised as a sun-filled, spacious double with inbuilt wardrobes and the listing included photos of a bed frame with sagging timber slats, an off-kilter hills hoist in a concrete back yard, and a narrow linoleum kitchen. No couples, pets or smoking. Available immediately and no references required.
Tentatively All In
Cynthia starts keeping her balcony sliding door open. She’d starts dressing more in her new clothes and doing her face even when she just plans on staying home. And when she hears Jane’s balcony door open, and starts to smell smoke, she more often than not manufactures casualness and goes out to see Jane. They catch up as much as anyone can in this time. Most of the time they’d just watch the quiet street in silence.
Pleased to Meet You
You see the surprise on your mother’s face that you’ve brought the white man home. Your mother is caught off-guard and becomes polite, not at all like with the others before.
Gas Station People – Editor’s Pick
Mandy was seeing Jackson after work, so she’d be feasting on a lunch of cigarettes and Diet Coke. She’d already painted her toes bright pink and shaved everything the way he liked it. She just had to last another eighteen hours and then he’d be on his way back to Tampa and she could eat as many cheeseburgers as she wanted.