ZVI A SESLING: The Most Obnoxious Student

Flash fiction by Zvi A. Sesling When Dreams Come True   I went to bed exhausted from laboring all day refurbishing cables on the George Washington Bridge. It is harrowing being hundreds of feet above the Hudson River working on those cables with only a safety line.   I fell asleep almost instantly and dreamed

PETER CHERCHES: More than enough cooks

Flash fiction by Peter Cherches  Help!   The guy sitting down on the sidewalk, leaning against the side of a building, had a sign that said “HELP!” I pulled a single out of my wallet and tried to hand it to him. He slapped my hand away. “I don’t need your filthy lucre,” he barked

BARBARA NOVACK: Definitely not a New York Moment

Barbara Novack Love at 70   The first thing I noticed about him was the graceful way he walked as he crossed the street to the sidewalk café on Second Avenue where I sat nursing my morning coffee and croissant. The sun angling up over the East River glinted on his close-cropped brown hair, bringing

BARBARA WESTWOOD DIEHL Throwing Eggs, With Lila

Barbara Westwood Diehl  Mischief Night     He doesn’t think he should be the one carrying the carton of eggs. The whole Mischief Night thing was her idea. And they’re too old to be outside in the dark with kids slinging toilet paper over tree branches. Would the people in this neighborhood think her pregnant belly is

LUKE ROLFES: Showbiz Pizza in the Late 1980s

Flash Fiction by Luke Rolfes Spectacular Regular   The disturbed man crests on the blue, iron bridge. He’s unloading rounds at passing cars. Active, they call him, though he is standing still, not aiming. He squeezes the trigger, shakes his head, and then squeezes. Again and again. Leavenworth, Kansas on the near bank. A military

KATIE BURGESS: Duane’s Still Stuck In That Cave

Flash fiction by Katie Burgess The Single   Our dorm was old and full of weird stuff, like the stairs to nowhere. Some people say an international student got sick and died alone over Christmas break in the 50’s, and by the time they found her the janitors couldn’t get the smell out, so they

LORETTE C LUZAJIC: Maybe This Is Where You Went

Flash Fiction by Lorette C. Luzajic The Shepherdess after Seraphine Louis, artist, France, 1864-1942   She painted what the angels she was named for told her to. Cosmic lightshows, dazzling bejewelled foliage, wide eyes: what she saw when she closed hers. Paradise followed her, glittering with shards of light like stained glass. Perhaps the glowing

KEITH HOERNER: Making it back to shore

Flash Fiction by Keith Hoerner   Making It Back to Shore with No Sign of Your Footsteps in the Sand—or Sight of You on the Horizon. I.I stand in water. It sloshes ’round my scuffed black leather wingtips, laps up the ankles of my rumpled dress slacks, turns khaki to the color of murky brown. Onlookers furrow their

DIANE D GILLETTE: Growing Up Fast

Flash fiction by Diane D. Gillette Bleeding Heart   Ruby’s dad bought her mom a bleeding heart bush for Mother’s Day that year. He created a special flower bed for it in the front yard, just under the bathroom window. He said he got it for her because he loved her so much. The blooms

DANIEL ADLER: In the ocean too far from shore

Flash Fiction by Daniel Adler The Shark  Circle the table for the seven. Point with my cue to the corner. Lean, slide, knock it in.   The lamp swings gently over the table as I circle again—key to surveying and keeping your opponent unbalanced, circling.   Four ball—much harder here, side pocket. Square the hips.