Races, Rules, and Ringlets
The trouble started the day she was born. Before that, really—as soon as the sonogram showed up. She was a she, and he couldn’t register that. He was proof that even some of the smartest gator-poaching hicks remained fluent only in the language of macho: talk of bullets, ballistics, and Read more
HELP WANTED
Seeking someone to fill perfect mother vacancy. Must be very good-hearted, but not so good as to cause feelings of inadequacy. Must be happy, but not so happy-go-lucky as to cause feelings of jealousy. Must be self-sacrificing, but not so selfless as to teach the wrong message about boundaries. Must Read more
The Goodbye Girl
We stood over you with the dropper of oxycodone, trying to get it in the tiny pocket inside your cheek, the three of us, like The Witches of Eastwick, but a lot less funny. Your jaw was clenched tight like a clam because you were about to die, only we Read more
Tiny Exile
Imploringly staring up at you desperate to reach your eyes, your heart. You direct your glance away, avoiding her pleading gaze. alone, fretful Trying to keep abreast of your footsteps, she’s running, almost tripping now. You merely quicken your stride, leaving her unable to level Read more
Red
Hiding. Always hiding. He keeps to dark corners of woodland, ghosting trees, with sharpened blades for claws. Often fractious, taking to gouging lines of discontent within woody bark, leaving imprints of dissatisfaction in his wake: macabre tattoos that speak of moroseness and an unspoken curfew. His having, and then, not Read more
THIS IS GOING KIND OF FAST
On our fifth day of texting, you mention a wedding in which I am your bride. In the middle of the night, something falls from the ceiling and hits me in the face. It’s a party favor that says MRS.&MRS. I put it in a drawer with all the other Read more