Short Fictions - Short Édition - page 4 - all works

Short Fiction

Humor 2 min

Hopping Mad

"This is the last straw," Alma said. She had just opened the mail at the kitchen table.
Sitting opposite, Walter peered over the top of his newspaper. "What straw is that?"
"It's anothe ... [+]

Short Fiction

Portrait 2 min Mature Audience

My father died of heart failure the same Chinese New Year girls began to draw my eye over my ire. I wasn't present for his death but figured us square since he wasn't present for my life.
Though ... [+]

Short Fiction

Slice of Life 5 min Mature Audience

Boy Misses Girl When She Leaves This Little Town

Zoe Marie Bel

Miranda and Joe met at middle school in Perkins, Oklahoma. Joe was a lumpy kid, not fat so much as unevenly proportioned. If his father hadn't been Deputy Chief of Police, Joe likely would have been ... [+]

Short Fiction

Sorrow Love & Loss 4 min

Some Meat on Those Bones

J. M. Eno

Terrydale was a hamlet much too small to be located on any map, and so war came to it as it comes to such places—not through the trampling of armies over its quaint town square, or the burning of ... [+]

Short Fiction

Sci-Fi & Fantasy Sorrow Love & Loss 4 min Mature Audience

Unwrapping

Madeleine Pelletier

The DeliverBot drops the box at my feet and wheezes out a metallic "Happy Birthday" before flying away. At first, I think it's a mistake, because it isn't my birthday. At least, I don't think it is ... [+]

Short Fiction

Sorrow Love & Loss 3 min

Would You Like My Jacket?

Ali Barzegar

I had just gotten out of the gas station and bought what I usually bought on my little Sunday night trips—a pack of reds, a water bottle (one of the purified waters. Spring water is quite gross to me ... [+]

Short Fiction

Sci-Fi & Fantasy 5 min

And One Day Soon Your Many Worlds

AJ Rocca

The Mine was due to rise in thirty minutes, and Regge wanted to grab a bowl of ramen planetside before his shift started. He biked through the smoke and stirring bodies and boss-bots buzzing around ... [+]

Short Fiction

Magical Realism Absurd 2 min

Paris Street; Rainy Day

Susan Fuchtman

There's a painting at the Chicago Institute of Art by Gustave Caillebotte titled Paris Street; Rainy Day. I used to go and look at it every Thursday. Thursday, because that's the day with the fewest ... [+]

Short Fiction

Slice of Life 4 min

An Unwanted Guest

Peter Barbour

I picked the rod tip up and swung it back to eleven o'clock, then snapped my wrist. The line flew out over the water, unfurling. At its maximum length, it settled on the water's surface with hardly a ... [+]

Short Fiction

Sci-Fi & Fantasy Absurd 2 min Mature Audience

An Android Story, Literally

Kevin Eric Paul

"Oh, Geoffrey! Good. You're finally home. Just put it all on the kitchen table. Were you able to get everything I wanted for the party?"

"Yes, ma'am."

"It's just that it's so late, did you run ... [+]

Short Fiction

Love & Loss Sorrow 4 min Mature Audience

Oceans Between Us

Corrie Haldane

My daughters run across the hard-packed sand, their blonde hair—Maureen's hair—streaming out behind them. They are three little replicas of my wife.
As always, the worry grips my heart with icy ... [+]

Short Fiction

Sci-Fi & Fantasy 5 min

Invulnerable

J. Millard Simpson

The master alchemist's voice rang clearly from the stone walls. Anyone hearing it knew immediately that he was Important."The vials are identical," he explained, as if lecturing particularly favored ... [+]

Short Fiction

Slice of Life 2 min

Plain Cooking

DianeVB Broughton

My sister Ellen likes to tell me I am a good plain cook. Rather than be offended by this, I take a pride in getting the basics right. It doesn't matter how fancy you are if it doesn't taste ... [+]

Short Fiction

Quirky Suspense & Mystery 2 min Mature Audience

Ghost Writers

Martha Witt

There's a relief that comes with revealing things down to their minutiae; small gasps of relief make space in the bedroom for the proverbial elephant. I do have a good husband. He's the kind that does ... [+]

Short Fiction

Sci-Fi & Fantasy 4 min

Three Hundred Kilometers

William R D Wood

The wind outside was a constant howl, but the sun would be up in a few hours. Days were calmer, typically.
He'd have to climb out of the train tunnel and replace the antenna again if the weather got ... [+]

Short Fiction

Slice of Life 3 min

Crazy Mother Love

Alain Kerfs

She ruined my life and all she can think about is wearing khaki.
"They make you wear khaki jumpsuits," Mom says. "I look hideous in khaki."
Mom, Dad, and I are parked in front of the Federal ... [+]

Short Fiction

Slice of Life 5 min Mature Audience

Ethel Finds Money

Karen Heuler

My adopted sister Ethel sat opposite me at the dinner table, waiting for the food to arrive in the multicolored bowls Mom had gotten long ago, to cheer Ethel up and encourage her to eat. Ethel was ... [+]

Short Fiction

Slice of Life 2 min

The Next Right Thing

John Clark

I saw her drop something when she exited the car and rushed into the office building. The vehicle sped off, twirling what looked like an envelope into the busy street.
I hesitated, should I dash out ... [+]

Short Fiction

Slice of Life 4 min Mature Audience

Twenty Dollars

Carla Damron

I tilted my rocker back and blinked into the sun. A whirring fly circled my head. None of my efforts to swat the sucker had worked, so if I wanted to smoke, I'd have to put up with him and the likes ... [+]

Short Fiction

Slice of Life 5 min

The Hoard

Matt Goldberg

Back in my bleak days, when I used to wait tables at LongHorn Steakhouse, a scrounger friend of mine called me about an opportunity. Those were the days of busting my hump for meager tips from ... [+]

A New Kind of Literary Pulse

A New Kind of Literary Pulse

Hopping Mad

The Sweetest Stench

Boy Misses Girl When She Leaves This Little Town

Some Meat on Those Bones

Unwrapping

Would You Like My Jacket?

And One Day Soon Your Many Worlds

Paris Street; Rainy Day

An Unwanted Guest

An Android Story, Literally

Oceans Between Us

Invulnerable

Plain Cooking

Ghost Writers

Three Hundred Kilometers

Crazy Mother Love

Ethel Finds Money

The Next Right Thing

Twenty Dollars

The Hoard