Martha Benson had just put her hair in rollers when she saw the four men run up the stairs towards her son’s bedroom. “Howard Benson, what’s happening?” she asked. He explained everything. Mrs. Benson sighed, “You could’ve at least called to warn me. I don’t want people seeing me in rollers.” “I’m sorry, sweetie,” Howard faulted, ...

Betsy stayed behind to watch the house, while the others got into Howard’s van and headed to the hospital. When they arrived, they asked about Joe Peori. An EMT at the scene told them, “It’s touch and go for now, but he’s being cared for.” The men waited anxiously in the waiting area for five ...

Sawyer, looking flustered, hurried Howard and Jeremy out of the van once they parked. “The police chief called. They found someone else’s fingerprints on The Sea Monkey’s wheel!” he yelled. “Saw, calm down,” Howard said. “How can I be calm? Some slimeball used my precious boat for a heist!” Howard patted his friend’s back and ...

After Howard and Jeremy closed their store for the day, they drove to Love and Locket Jeweler’s, run by Mrs. Johnson. When they entered the shop, they saw her daughter, Wendy, at the counter. “Hello there, can I interest you gentlemen in anniversary gifts?” “We’re actually here to ask you a question,” Howard said. “Jeremy, ...

“Ridiculous! Sawyer wouldn’t steal!” Martha Benson declared. She slammed down a spoonful of mashed potatoes she was serving onto Jeremy’s plate. “We said the same, but this Pickiner guy won’t listen.” Jeremy wiped a glob of potato off his shirt. “Why go through that for a fancy rock? He thinks that wedding rings are an ...

An hour later, all five people were at the police station, talking over one another. “He is a thief!” the thin man exclaimed. “I swear on my life, I’m not!” Sawyer yelled. “Sawyer’s an honest guy; he’d never steal!” Jeremy said. “The evidence says otherwise,” the tall person said. “A gemstone falling out of a ...

I took the well-traversed path, the broad way to destruction. I took his outstretched, shadowed hand. And we became fast friends. Hand in hand we skipped along, my friend and I. Skipping along, singing a song, my friend and I. To what extent will we carry on, my friend and I? I tried to be ...

The gray morning sky clouds hovered over Nantucket. Howard Benson, a local fishmonger, drove down the street to his family’s shop, Howard and Son. Jeremy was already waiting for him. He and his father caught local fish for the store with help from Sawyer, a family friend who owned a boat. On Tuesdays, it was ...

Content warning: This story contains mentions of suicide, self-harm, and trauma. This story is written for an adult audience. Midnight-black shadows cascaded over the bright blue-painted walls of a studio-apartment-sized home. Crickets chirped outside a barely cracked open window that displayed an open, blanketed heavenly sky. The stars themselves twinkled like gems across a desert ...

I pour my heart out on the page.Heartbreak, happiness,Bitterness, rage.This blank screen is now my stage.This is my letter to the world.This is my life unfurled. Take my hand.Walk with me.This journey is now ours to see.All the love, the tears,The laughter, joys, and fears.This life we make so much better,When we walk life’s road ...