The landlord was right. The passing trains behind her row home had become white noise. Hattie lived her life around the comings and goings of thousands of commuters. She was one of them. Departed at 6:39, returned at 5:10. The train rattled like a dog shaking the rain from its fur just before it dipped ...

A shiver of nerves zips up my spine as I wait in the empty parlor. Most days, this place is hopping with customers or random beings coming off the street to catch a glimpse of the inside. I certainly feel that after peering at all the colorful designs etched on the walls outside. The bold ...

Every morning, Ramon stood in front of Mr. Keith’s House on 16 Baker Street. It looked like all the other houses on Baker street, built in the 1950s with dark green trim. Nothing unusual about it at all, except he never liked it. Ramon felt it watching him from those eye-shaped windows. Sometimes Mr. Keith ...

“What is your favorite color?” “Black,” Baize answered. Oliver lifted an eyebrow as he leaned back in his chair. “Black is not a color. It’s actually the absence of color,” he said. “Every color has its own wavelength. Black nor white have a specific one.” Baize stared at him for a moment.  “Thanks for the ...

“Promise me that you’ll never do that again!” My mother’s face was screaming like a scary Halloween mask. I tasted iron, and warm spit dripped down my lips. The limp body of a tiny kitten was crumpled in my lap. “O-okay, Mama,” I stuttered, resisting the urge to lick the salty-sweet taste from around my ...

“Nothing yet about Nick?” Jason asked Kristen through his cell phone. He knew he was calling her too much, but he couldn’t help it.  “We’re looking for him, Jay. No leads yet,” his partner said calmly. Jason paced the hallway outside of Nick’s apartment. If Kristen knew he was there, she’d be aggravated, but he ...

Jason wasn’t shocked to find Nick’s apartment in disarray. His friend wasn’t known for his housekeeping skills, and if something happened to him inside the apartment, no one would ever know based on how chaotic it always was. The smell didn’t help either. A mix of crusted dishes, dirty laundry, and sweaty man permeated the ...

Ellie May 6th It was nights like this Ellie loved most. Everyone huddled together, all snug in their cozy living room.

The potbellied case had a glass door and the brass pendulum was visible as it swung, keeping constant rhythmic time. Roman numerals and hands of shining brass graced the face of the clock. Standing at almost eight feet tall, Evelyn stepped back to view the delicate carvings of leaves across the top.

Jason stared at his arms, watching the water run over the pink scrapes and scratches zigzagging over his skin. His brain quickly flashed to Tara running her fingers across the flesh of his arm, the memory making him stumble back against the shower stall tile. With a swift turn of the faucet, Jason ended what ...