Category: Microfiction

She half smiled at the camera, still uncomfortable with the idea of her image being captured forever. She clutched the little boy so tightly that the discomfort showed on his face. The atmosphere behind them was one of unfettered freedom, the beach packed with holiday makers for the first time in years. She never saw…

She was stuck between two lives. A smile for one. A frown for the other. Her mouth showing both at the same time. People thought she couldn’t hear them talking about her. They assumed her smile was from the old life. From the person she used to be. What they didn’t know was that she…

It’s time to go. Go where? Over there. What’s over there? Why, are you scared? No, I don’t even care. Then go over there. But the sign says beware! I knew you were scared. Ok fine. Double dare. He uttered a swear. That’s not even fair! A double dare is always fair. Urgh. I know…

“How long will you be gone for?” He tightened the straps of his bag, trying not to show how heavy it was and how nervous he felt. “I’m not sure.” Her forehead creased. Her brother had always been impulsive, but this was something else. “Why are you doing this Jack?” He exhaled. “My nest is…

She felt lighter and heavier at the same time, something she had never felt before and something she hoped to never feel again. Tucking herself into her hood, she walked with her head down. She knew that if she made eye contact with any of them she might never recover. She needed to recover. A…

She had been driving for hours. The rain on the windscreen shattered the headlights of the cars coming in the opposite direction so that they filled her vision like fireworks. She tried to blink back the exhaustion. It jumped in front of her so suddenly that she hit it before her brain even processed the…

“What do you think we could reach if we climbed that ladder?” They craned their necks up at the same time. “An apple from the tree!” A snort of derision. “Aim higher!” “The top of the house?” “Higher!” “I’ll reach the clouds!” “Higher!” “I’m going to reach the stars!” * Thirty-eight years later she looked at…

“The voice can be seen, growing the most beautiful things.” “What do you mean?” Megan took her by the hand and showed her canvases covered in geometries of fronds, curves of petals, skeletons of branches. “Did you make these?” Her eyes shone. “I sang them.” Emily’s heart lifted with possibility. “Show me.” She grinned and…

It only takes a split second for everything to change. A single decision. Sometimes a single word. One that cannot be unsaid. An action that cannot be undone. Yes. No. I do. I don’t. Send. Delete. Run. Hide. Guilty. Not Guilty. She stood as the jury entered the room. Swallowed a scratchy, dry nothing but…

She heard the soft crack and felt her ears twitch like a cat’s. Turning around, she saw the spiked green shell on the pavement, the jewel of its insides shining up at her. She knelt down and picked it up, running her thumb over its smooth surface. She placed it in her pocket with the…