Leslie was not attractive. He didn’t want to objectify her in any specific way, but she was ugly, no question. Whatever part of him made inventory of physical characteristics and analyzed the data worked automatically. The conclusion was in his favor. The great worry he’d had was that she would trigger the hormonal crazy part… Continue reading Robustness (part 5)
Category: Microfiction
Invalid
No hope of recovery meant that he didn’t have to worry anymore about the sorts of calamities that other people face. He would have no relationships. He would never have a job again, and though money was an issue, he wouldn’t have to worry about it. No one could move him from the house. “Get… Continue reading Invalid
Robustness (part 4)
Ezekiel was waiting in the subterrain for a subway train. He fudded the phrase as he said it, and repeated it several times until all the syllables were clear. Someone saw him muttering and made a face. He nodded in her direction until she turned her head and ran away. Had he won? Though he wasn’t… Continue reading Robustness (part 4)
Sabbatical (balloons)
Most of the other parents dropped off their kids and left, but Harold was determined to be fun. After ten years in a company that offered no satisfaction, he had taken time off to meet his 7-year-old for the first time. Josie’s parents were good hosts, and they wanted him to feel welcome, though he… Continue reading Sabbatical (balloons)
Star Wars
Han Solo took another sip of space whiskey and scanned the room. Work had gotten dry since the empire was disbanded. For a few months, he and Chewy had stayed with Leia, but he couldn’t be on the same planet with either of them anymore. The way she played with that Wookie’s hair, right in… Continue reading Star Wars
King
As the chief legislator signed his last death warrant for the day, a wet and towel-clad King Gorgon came stumbling into his quarters. “We have to protect our citizens!” he shouted. “I want you to post a decree banning all bathtubs, showers, anything with a faucet. From now on, our government is decidedly anti-faucet.” The… Continue reading King
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Robustness (part 3)
Ezekiel resented privacy, the entire idea of it. He thought about this in public restrooms, how social convention dictates that some behaviors be done in secret. At ten years old he’d had the thought: what if no one else takes off their clothes in the shower? What if that’s just my crazy family? People might… Continue reading Robustness (part 3)
Telekinesis (breasts)
When Lana gave her talks to two or three people instead of a dozen or more, she stammered. Large groups were a blur, and she could monologue about art and artifacts without interrupting herself. In smaller groups, she saw their faces. The man was leering, the woman was staring, and their eyes made her shoulders… Continue reading Telekinesis (breasts)
Sketchbook (tattoo)
Jolie wore long sleeves. Everyone would laugh if they knew she’d been working on a dragon. So far, it was just an outline. She was polishing windows when a woman in the waiting area asked her what was underneath her shirt. “Nothing,” she said. She tried to affect a blasé attitude. The woman smiled. “Let… Continue reading Sketchbook (tattoo)
Post Modern Existential Horror 