Her dog was not there to be fed or let out or to jump onto the bed and nuzzle her. He wasn’t there to push against her, taking more space.

Her bedside lamp wasn’t there to her left but the room was bright enough as it was, even though the sun hadn’t risen.

There were no soft curtains to temper sounds or plush carpet to pad her feet to the bathroom. And there was no way to lock the bathroom door....

He eyed her from his hospital bed, searching for signs that the flattery landed. He saw her unmoved. He backed out the flattery to give someone else credit and put her in her place. Unresponsive. He feigned sleep as he planned his next attack. How did the hold he had over her as a child atrophy? The honor to edit his 900-page work of genius would be his magnanimous gift. A trophy to bring glory t...

Velvet darkness surrounds the vampire as he slinks through the night, sliding and unseen. A tailor when he isn’t hunting, his hand reflexively mimics a running stitch as he spots his prey and remembers the feel of a needle piercing silk. With the sound of ripping cotton, he lunges and plunges his teeth into the small pale neck and drinks....

The darkness around me is rich like velvet and I can slink through it, sliding, unseen, with venom at the tip of my knife. Flesh gives resistance to my knife like velvet gives to my sheers and needles when I make a topcoat. The pushing through is ecstasy....

Two women known for beaming, friendly smiles Feeling unobserved Walk a corridor in muted conversation With drooping shoulders, mouths, and eyes...

She felt the pressure of attention at her side after the subway doors closed and turned to see that the man who entered had visually claimed her. That happened with some men, who seemed to believe that if they liked the look of a woman, she was his to claim. She liked to learn other languages to connect, but thought this could be an opportunity to disconnect, to obstruct his pick-up game. She wrot...

I was dreaming of summer evenings watching my father push the rotary mower when I awoke in the grass with the moon full and risen high in the sky. I opened my palm to find broken blades of grass smelling sweet and sharp and felt a chill from the dew seeping through my thin cotton dress....

“You’ve been amazed by my garden and I love that you enjoy it so much. And I feel like we’re getting a lot closer lately and I am starting to develop feelings for you snd I want you to know me better and … this is really scary to say …”

“Hey, I love you too.”

“Um.”

“Wha what were you going to say?”

“I, uh, love you.”

“I mean, I do love you, or I’m starting to, and that’s why I thought you sho...

In the bath wilting in heat to my neck No one out there waiting Eyes and temples drip salt into healing water Door shut tightly, might the monsters come?...

I’d need waterproof matches, no, a flint will last longer, needle and thread, and a really long and good book. That’s three of ten things. Needle and thread count as one, right? Wait, needle, thread, and scissors count as one—I need the scissors to cut. And I need a decent sized knife that can also serve as a machete without being too big. A few plastic containers should help, and a water filter. ...