by Reed Kuehn &&&The sun warmed him as the rolling waves sang their hypnotic song. Eyelids heavy, he licked the salt from his lips, content to lie there on the sand without a care in the world. &&&“Mr. Askerian,” a soft voice called to him. The sunlight dimmed and the crashing waves quieted. “Mr. Askerian,” … Continue reading I’ve Got a Dream for you
by Epiphany Ferrell It occurred to Marion that she’d been lying in bed quite a long time. At first she’d watched the shadow from the windowpane move up the wall, across the ceiling, down the other wall. Then she’d not been able to see it anymore. It all seemed gray, the indistinct light of not-quite-morning. … Continue reading Freshman
by Bruce Barrow &&&Somehow she always had the money. Her favorite was Oxy, but Vicodin or Percocet would do. Sometimes, though, the money was harder to get than others. &&&On the radio in Ben’s Lexus people talked about how the market always served the consumer but they never said anything real. It was the kind … Continue reading Slug Bug
by K. Di Prima The screen door opened with a rusty squeal just as the violins of Mozart’s Requiem soared to crescendo. Tom stepped into the kitchen, exuding the aroma of fresh cut grass overlaid with sweat. At the sink, Kathryn stiffened. “Smells great in here!” Tom said, as if his compliments still mattered. Then … Continue reading Cherchez La Femme
by DC Diamondopolous James, as the doctors and staff at St. Mark’s Regional Hospital in San Diego insisted on calling him, applied pancake make-up over the band-aid camouflaging the skin lesion on his chin. He was glad to be home, surrounded by his Nippon figurines, the ornate lampshades with exotic scarves draped over the top, … Continue reading 1984
by Julian Drury &&&&I-10 West, between Destin and Mobile. The Stranger stood still along the road. He wore a white collared shirt, buttoned down, with khaki pants covering his legs, and a newsboy cap on his head. Green reflective sunglasses rested over his eyes, black gloves covering his hands. A slow burning cigarette hung from … Continue reading Eternal Predators
by Steven Carr &&&&Jeremiah sits on the corner of Haight and Ashbury Streets. In front of him, feathery wisps of smoke from a burning stick of cinnamon incense jabbed into the bottom of an overturned Styrofoam cup curls upward and drifts away in the heat. He has his legs crossed beneath his ankle length tie-dyed … Continue reading The Last Guru
by Lucy Zhang My first love taught me how to fold a pinwheel. You need a square sheet of paper, he told me. But I had no square paper on hand, so we snuck a stack of white 8.5 by 11 printer paper from the classroom supplies closet. You can use this as a bookmark, … Continue reading My Love is on Paper Only
by Hayden Rigby The day I stop loving you is the day the vultures show up. My grandfather always told me it was a myth that they circle around animals that are dying, but then why is a group of them called a wake? I hear them first, then look out my window to see … Continue reading Grapefruit Vultures
by Liza Sofia I pass by Copley Square at a quarter to 11:00. Setting one foot in front of the other, I balance on the narrow red curb between the sidewalk and the gutter- between the past and present. By now, the drizzle has grown into profuse rain which seeps through my clothes. I fold … Continue reading Metro to a New Epoch
Dream Noir 