I passed by this shop dozens of times. Antiques were never my thing. Today was different. The tug of an invisable string dragged me through the large, domineering doors. What was I looking for? My scences were overcome by the mass of clutter and earthy smells. The invisible force beckoned me forward.

“Are you looking for anything particular, or just browsing?” The shop keeper greeted me with a wa...

Victoria had it out for me. That’s the way it had always been. Since grade school she relentlessly teased me. Today’s target: the asteroid of a pimple snuggly attached to my forehead; center-stage for Icky Vicky’s bullying pleasures. I wished she would choke on her lunch. I watched as she chewed. Strings of saliva mixed with lunch meat as she gnashed her last bites. No such luck today.

Later tha...

I see them

My family

I wonder

Do they see me?

In my transformation

Soaring above

Wings that remember what

Once was touch. Touch.

The touch of their embrace

The warmth

Of love. Of connection.

The past.

No.

They don’t see me

No

They see a beast

I see them

Shooing me

Annoyance

Greedy beast

She’s looking now

Eyes searching mine

Does she see?

“Shoo beast, get, go!”...

Dead? At the end of my shift, both mom and baby were doing great. That had only been 12 hours ago. My training had prepared me for this, but what had once been a yearly occurrence shifted to weekly in the past year. By now there should have been some data to suggest a correlation with this massive increase in infant mortality. There should have—

A strong kick interrupted my thoughts. In three...

“We need to get the windows boarded up this week.” I knew “we” referred to me where any physical labor was involved. I had to “earn my keep” with Aunt Sophia. Her voice dragging in my mind like nails on a chalk board. I don’t think my parents had this in mind when crowning her my godmother. A life of orphaned servitude.

“I should have time after the final hunt,” angst biting through my words....

I suspected this. Months. Maybe a year at this point. The way he jumped at the sound of his phone. The gym membership. The growing amount of trips that were exclusively business or “for the boys”. But this… this was proof. A single piece of mail. A lease was ending in the next city over. My entire body sagged as I read their names together over and over attempting to wrap my brain around something...

Everything was abuzz with excitement and love

My heart skipped a beat as my eyes took in the view

The flowers, the smiles, the cloudless sky above

And then I took a glance at you

My legs threatened to give out

My lungs quivered as I gasped

My heartbeat thundered about

As our hands finally clasped

There you stood

Your smile in a brilliant curve

Your eyes full of tears that I understood

How could...