Emma slid through the door, calling out to her mother. “Mom? Mom are you in here?” She kicked off her shoes, to find her mother in the kitchen wiping up some sort of mess off the counter. “Mmm, what smells so good?” Her mother turned and gestured to the oven. “Dinner.” The word came out curt. There was only reason for this.

“Alright, what he did he do now?” Her mother was a ticking time bomb, e...

The bell that hung over the vet clinic door rang out, the noise setting off the previously sleeping Wheaton terrier that sat on top of Cara’s feet into a frantic manic for the third time that morning.

“Lulu. _Stop._” Grabbing her collar, she led her back to her bed beneath her desk. But this wasn’t just a dog, she reminded herself. This was Dr. Garret’s pride and joy, his very reason for existin...

A wave of nausea bubbles up in Cora’s stomach, a new sensation she still hasn’t grown used to. Her doctors assure her that this is normal, so Cora promises herself she won’t overthink the changes overtaking her body. Yet she can’t help but grip at her flat belly with each twitch.

Her task today is simple – buy a children’s book. A book her own mother read to her throughout her childhood. A story ...

Nathan called them odd. He called them stupid, and by extension, me, for finding them fascinating. While I knew he was only teasing me, it was another metaphorical paper cut into our already deteriorating relationship.

He sat in his room’s corner, one headphone pushed past his ear, his attention fixated on the bright blasts coming from his monitor’s screen.

“Have fun today with Kara?” he aske...

“This could be your last chance. You should take it,” Mara said, throwing back her second shot of the night. She’d demanded an immediate girl’s night out and since I hadn’t left my apartment other than to go to work for weeks, I figured a change of scenery wouldn’t hurt. Plus I knew she was prone to cabin fever if she didn’t get to catch up.

I stared down at my drink – still untouched – shruggin...

Three years ago, Simon Tribar was the cockiest, smuggest, man Madison had ever met. It was chance that they became co-workers, and while at first she had detested him, years of knowing him had given him a new title in her life: her best friend.

“Remind me, what’s this dish called?” she called out, watching Simon set the oven timer.

“I can’t tell you.”

“You could, but won’t, right?” He shrugged,...

Four walls made from plywood and drywall

An empty canvas stood before us

We took our time, deliberate with each choice

The choice to choose friendship first, then love

The choice to wait and purchase our dream home together

The choice to continue dating each other, even when we already knew we would be forever

The choice to re-paint the bedroom walls golden yellow, like the sunrises that ...

We are wired for connection.

Perhaps your desire for connection feels dormant compared to the stranger sitting beside you, with their arms animated in wild directions, a love struck grin on their face.

We’re led to believe that we aren’t whole on our own.

We’re less than.

Broken.

Defective.

We enter into relationships with expectations.

This person is meant to fulfill us – meet my needs before I...

It had been exactly one year since Ian stepped here inside his home. A thick layer of dust suctioned itself to every surface. A tickle formed in his throat, and he grabbed his inhaler from his backpack before he gave himself a self-induced asthma attack. His vintage furniture was all left exactly as he’d left it. Like time had simply come to a complete halt, regardless of the passing months.

He ...

She didn’t need to watch endless Youtube videos on how to properly contour her face in cake-like makeup.

She needed to learn how to develop proper study habits.

She didn’t need to drink alcohol to cope with her unhappy relationships.

She needed to learn how to walk away from those who were no longer good for her.

She didn’t need to punish and un-love those from her past.

She needed to learn t...