Lambaste

“Are you kidding me?”

A woman’s voice blasts through my apartment window from below.

I shake my head. Whatever. They’ll move along.

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Machu Picchu

Of stone on mountaintops did builders create their great city. Casting a record of the passage of their lives into a far-flung and uncertain destiny. Those people, the heart and life

Retrospective

I’d been dreading this moment for months. Ever since Mom had come into our kitchen, told me to turn off the TV, and made the announcement.

Popular

“Oh, c’mon. You have to go.” Marcie huffed.

Arjen licked his lips.

“The band is super popular. They’re lit. Everyone loves them.”

He sighed. “I’ve never heard of them.”

Marcie shook her hands in the air. “What’s

Relieved

I’ve always loved stories. Grandfather read them at bedtime. Then he told his stories of the river, the barber shop, or the little elves that lived in his garden.

Words spun worlds in my head,

Bottle and Glass

“I suppose that’s it.” Angus shoveled the student exams in his worn satchel, then rammed the cap on the red pen.

“Aye.” I took another sip of the overly hoppy beer. The place still smelled of fresh paint.

“You’ve made plans then?”

I shrugged. Students entered

Vivid

In the space of a handful of heartbeats, a moment forever vivid and often reconsidered. You asked the unexpected of the unworldly. Your smile sparkled and your laugh ever echoes. The feeling of confusion, so overwhelming, has faded through time, replaced with questions. What answer

Aware

He set the revolver on the table next to the empty bottle and the last of his cash. He rubbed his eyes. Grit ground painfully.

He stood and grabbed the money off the table. One last trip to the liquor store. No hurry.

Outside the skies poured rain. He darted to the dry bus stop.

Automatic

“It’s automatic,” he said. His scar blazed violently.

Another’s eyebrow lifted. “The orders aren’t clear. We should call the may—”

“It’s done!” His eyes narrowed and lips stretched tighter.

The others all nodded their heads. Contempt crossed their faces.

Capable

“I have nothing to hide.” I have everything to hide. Scumbag reporters’ questions blur into a peaceful white noise. I take a deep breath and smile.

The perky blonde in the front row waves her arm again. She is exactly my type. I point at her big boobs. “Yes? You in the pink?”

“Are you capable of providing