On the 8th of September we were one of the chosen finalists to perform on a big stage for Tournament of Minds infront of all of Sydney! 10 teams, including us, were chosen out of the 200 teams! As we all arrived, we picked a spot and started rehearsing our performance. The feeling of anxiety flamed through our limbs, we had been practicing the performance for 6 weeks, every single day. We had the ...

Claire was having a good day.

She had her favorite playlist in, a new iced coffee in hand, and managed to snag the last empty double seat on the city bus—not next to a snorer, not sticky, and no mystery smells. A rare jackpot.

As the bus rolled along, she sipped her coffee and started daydreaming. It was that kind of warm, zoning-out-in-public moment where everything feels peaceful.

Until she f...

I’m going to do it. I’m going to do it now. I have to tell Rivven Hase how I feel about him. That one kiss under the bleachers has been replaying in my mind for the last ten days. I can’t get over the feel of his onyx strands of hair in my hand or the taste of him on my lips. I need him so bad it’s primal. Who cares what everybody else thinks? It’s 2025. Boys kiss boys. I don’t want him to hide fr...

We got there early that morning to secure our spot. Despite saying sober last night, the couple days of drinking that preceded were still taking their toll on me. A Spanish police officer points at the ground and holds up a hand as if to say _stay here._

The quaint city of Pamplona felt different this morning. The simplistic beauty I observed a few days ago was like stepping back in time to a si...

Es wird gefeiert. Es ist Geburtstag. Es ist der Geburtstag von Iwan. Iwan der Schreckliche, das ist sein Spitzname. Schlagermusik dröhnt schräg aus den billigen Boxen einer billigen Anlage. Die Leute trinken Bier und Futschi und Weinbrand.

Alle rauchen. Die Kinder sollen nicht da sein. Sie haben hier nichts zu suchen bei den Erwachsenen. Sie sollen sich um sich selber kümmern.

Iwan das Geburtst...

The embarrased moment I had is when I did a physical therapy test with my company last year. On the event I almost past most of the activities instead of the last one , run 2 mile under 18 minutes. The whole process had burned all of my energy already, so in the last event I felt down while walking in front of many buddies. I am deemed very persistent until that embarrasing moment. Until now I am ...

I mindlessly wander around the halls of my high school. Teachers, students and even parents pass me, but no one pays me any attention. I am ghost to everyone, to everyone, except Kyle. The thought of him makes my skin crawl. My stomach rumbles, i have tried so hard to avoid the cafeteria, but I couldn’t let myself starve to death at school either. My feet dragging me to the cafetaria, while I try ...

Primary School was hard. Ben was too aware of his own thoughts to make it easy. He seemed to stand outside of himself at all times. Where other kids went running around the playground enjoying themselves, Ben was scrutinising a leaf on the ground, and entertaining a thousand thoughts. He was like the bowler, all showmanship and swagger, aiming for the strike. The execution looked and felt good in ...

The rain had been steady all day, draping the city in a gray hush. A dull glow from the streetlamps pooled in the cracks of the pavement, and the air smelled like damp concrete and something raw, something unsaid.

Michael stood beneath the awning of the coffee shop, his fingers clenched around the strap of his bag. She was here. Two feet away. Close enough that he could see the freckles on her nos...

Julissa cut up the last of the sausage and chicken that was to be included in this year’s gumbo for the annual Bazaar at St. Mary's Chruch.

It was that time of year again when the annual Baazar for many Louisiana Creoles came and gathered in the community to experience lost memories while listening to native Zydeco players playing. Julissa waited 12 months to cook this year’s gumbo for the right ...