Something was off with her footsteps. They sounded wrong. Jessica could not place why. She wandered, mostly bare legs moving through the subtle air-conditioning breeze, and her long silk shirt hung over her shorts.
“Hey, mom, are you home?” she asked, then stood ultra-still, and waited for some indication of a living being. Continue reading
“It’s Christmas time!”
No! It’s not!
Not yet. I love Christmas. I adore Christmas. Holy crap, it’s almost here and I am excited. Family and Christmas specials and shopping (yep, bucking stereotypes, I’m a guy who deeply enjoys going shopping—just not for clothes) and I’m looking forward to every iota of Christmas lights I can get into my eyeballs and on my brain.
BUT I also like Thanksgiving. I find that holiday fun as well. I’m looking forward to that, first. So, just because Halloween is over, does not mean it is winter holiday time yet! Continue reading
Eric could not understand why no one had considered dipping potato chips in ketchup. They were essentially French fries, so there was not much a difference in flavor, not much of an issue—so why didn’t more people do it?
“What, do you love her?” Fae demanded, spreading out her arms. “Do you want to fuck her, huh? Have her over and let her sleep in my spot?” Continue reading
Oh, a writer likes caffeine. Oh, big shock. Yeah, that’s not the issue: it’s that I didn’t always like coffee—and, in fact, I consider coffee to be emblematic of a deep issue with modern society. Continue reading
Among the shelves, I was not sure I saw it. I glanced, and I glimpsed the piercing eyes of yellow and darkness. But, only for a second, and that made me hopefully unsure.
Because it would not be the first time I saw something I could not possibly claim was real. It would not be the only thing I was sure, in the moment, but only in the moment, I had seen. Continue reading
A skeleton laid, mostly in one piece, on the lawn of Old Sean’s property, and the kids of the town wondered why.
There were different theories, as there always were, but most of them came to the agreement it was, regardless of why, not a good idea to step on the yard. Despite being a pleasant, almost emerald green, the blades of grass held malice. Continue reading
Cars are not my thing; I don’t drive. Somehow, someway, through a combination of money, massive texting bouts, and the kindness of complete strangers and close friends alike, I’ve traveled in my twenty-two years to some interesting places almost entirely without touching a steering wheel.
Now, this is not to say I don’t wish to drive, but, circumstances too complicated and personal to go into now prevents me from doing so. Which means, for the time being, I am a rider—I am a person in shotgun or the backseat. Continue reading
The fire was warmer than Henry thought it ever could be. This close, it was something beyond heat; it was a dry pain, a wrapping skin melt. And he couldn’t move away from it, that option was even more dangerous. The shiny metal this close to his neck promised a much warmer and wetter pain should he make the attempt.
“You didn’t like my story, huh?” Finn asked, pressing the knife closer. With the light casting on his face, he was the second brightest thing in the forest of barren trees. A fox ran by and cracked twigs, and both boys–even if not consciously–noticed it.
“It wasn’t scary,” Henry replied, his eyes wide. “But I didn’t not like it.”
“What’s wrong with my ghost story? You want to see scary? I can show you scary!” Continue reading
I’d forgotten about you.
I took you, put you in there.
That closet. Shut away.
What did you even feed on while you were there?
I gave you no more bitterness.
No more sorrow.
How could you still even exist? Continue reading
Outside the room, the world starless, empty and cold. Inside the room, the man paced, back and forth—with little idea of what was happening outside. These two facts, as I have presented them, are all you need to understand. Continue reading
I’ve experienced many art forms that present all the bad ways technology will fuck us up, kill us all, or enslave mankind.
And, yet, even though I’ve seen all of this, even though I can perceive how we might annihilate our planet, I am weirdly optimistic about the future. Continue reading
Scans show nothing wrong with Yang, but, still, he is there.
“Look, I’m sure you have wonderful insurance, Yang, but this is gone too far.”
Yang crosses his arms over his chest. He’s a small man but has a large frown. “Are you telling me you do not want more business? It’s a dumb thing to deny service to a repeat customer.” Continue reading
Being a writer in 2017 is not easy. We have competition and not just from our fellow wordsmiths. How can a book compete with Netflix and Hulu and movies? I mean, I love books, duh, and I read a lot of them, but even I am a lover of movies. How could you not love movies? They’re so good lately. Continue reading
One could not overstate the significance of the foam sword. Perhaps, in the entire history of the room, and the house’s various occupants through the years, the foam sword was the most important thing to ever grace those four walls. For one, it tied the room together nicely; for another, it made several religions with its very presence. Continue reading
I realize this sounds pretentious, but I don’t think most people end up in the scenarios I do. And that’s sometimes a problem.
Because, advice relies upon shared experiences, and I often don’t mesh with others in that regard. So, I had to come up with a plan for when I can’t always find someone with an answer. And, well, it might not be a great long-term solution, but what I came up with is to laugh. Continue reading
Coolerbs Writes 