The rule was not about health.In Eden, nobody got sick, or injured. There was no warning labels on sweet fruits, no funerals in the afternoon. Every sunrise looked as if it had been polished before being hung in the sky.The rule existed because smoking was unnecessary.And in a world designed to be complete, unnecessary things … Continue reading Cigarettes in the Garden of Eden
Tag: short story
In Sacred Spaces
The first thing I noticed about his apartment was that it did not feel lived in.It felt prepared.We had been dating for six weeks when Daniel invited me over for dinner, He made a delicious arrabbiata, apologizing a dozen times for the mess while standing in a kitchen so clean that it looked staged. When … Continue reading In Sacred Spaces
Muse
I will write you in every story I can.In every way I know.For as long as I have words left.Sometimes, you might be the heroine.Sometimes, just a stranger passing through the lines.Sometimes, you will not be there at all,yet every sentence will belong to you. In one story, I might compare you to a rose.In … Continue reading Muse
Everything Must Burn
By the third night, he had learnt two things.1. No one was coming to save him.2. Cold would probably kill him before the hunger does.The island was small. The sea surrounded it in every direction, endless and glassy.During the day, it almost looked beautiful.At night, the island turned to ice.The cold sat next to him … Continue reading Everything Must Burn
A Writer’s Sin
In the middle of the night,my mind writes.It writes of dreamscapes and fantasies,of old love and new heartaches,of conversations that never happened,and stories that ended differently.It writes letters to those no longer here,and speeches I will never give.It rewrites past,and drafts future.It invents worlds,and mourns their death.My mind,in the middle of the night,does not wish … Continue reading A Writer’s Sin
How to Romance a City
The ten dollar bill was lying lonely on the pavement, fluttering slightly in the morning breeze like it had somewhere important to be. Jade bent down to grab it, feeling both lucky and a little guilty, as if he was stealing someone else's treasure.He looked around, expecting someone to shout “Hey, that is mine!”But the … Continue reading How to Romance a City
The Girl Who Burnt Troy (at my coffee shop)
That single side look of hers made me feel like someone had thrown me into a blender and pureed my soul.You know the lookNot an intentional look, that can be explained. This was one of those corner eye glances, the kind that burnt Troy to the ground. The kind that has men writing poetry or … Continue reading The Girl Who Burnt Troy (at my coffee shop)
Train Dreams
3:33amI wake up completely drenched in a puddle of my own sweat. It is always the same train in my dreams every night.A massive red locomotive that arrives precisely at the moment I fall asleep.It never stays on the tracks, just runs straight through my house, through the living room, through the kitchen, through my … Continue reading Train Dreams
Paper Crown
The black fedora sat at the edge of the shoe rack in a thrift shop that not a lot of people walked into.The hat was not anything extraordinary but it still caught his eye. It was an impulsive purchase for thirteen dollars and fifty cents. The kind of thing you buy because it makes you … Continue reading Paper Crown
Love You Like a Poem I Never Wrote
They say that people who write poems are a lost breed of die hard romantics, who would lyrically put their heart on the line. I have been sitting here for the past hour, staring at an empty page that seems to stare back at me. All I have managed to write is "To me, you … Continue reading Love You Like a Poem I Never Wrote
Currently Reading
The river moved like it had somewhere to be, but at the same time it had no urgency of getting there. The water was clear enough for me to see the pebbles beneath, smooth little obstacles that had long since become part of the river's shape. Sunlight broke through the large canopy of oak trees … Continue reading Currently Reading
Blind Nights
They say that broken women know how to love, but not always who to love, and she stood as proof of that.She looked around the room, last night lingered in small, scattered ways, like light filtering into a space through crooked blinds. It had been good, he had been what she wanted him to be, … Continue reading Blind Nights
Tinderbox
Like a matchstick, waking up in the ruins, of a house it burned down,
Piku and his bag of Peanuts
Ever since he was a boy, Piku had always carried a small bag of peanuts.No one really knew why, not even Piku. It was something his grandmama had started.She used to put a handful into his pockets before he ran out to play.For what exactly, she never explained.Years passed, grandmama was gone, the reason did … Continue reading Piku and his bag of Peanuts
Love Poem Inside
It was one of those chocolates that looked like it melted away sweetly inside the mouth and left a memory on the mind. He stood in the aisle longer than necessary.He had originally reached for a chili chocolate. Something that reminded him of her, fiery yet cute.But then he hesitated, chili felt like a statement. … Continue reading Love Poem Inside
September’s Stage
September had been a bikini bar dancer since last March. Not exactly her dream, but then again her dream was to marry DiCaprio and live on a yacht, so compromise had always been her skill set.She came to LA three ago to become an actress, along with a million other wide eyed blondes with head … Continue reading September’s Stage
The Last Time She Was There
It is not common for your ex to be dancing at your wedding, but there she was, moving easily through the crowd, spinning as if the night bent itself around her. For a second I wondered if she had come by mistake, wandering into the wrong life, the wrong ending. Then she looked at me … Continue reading The Last Time She Was There
How to replace people with similar looking people in your life
To be entirely honest, I never meant to replace anyone at first. It started as an accident. When my best friend Rivan moved to another city, I found myself nodding along to conversations with a man at my local coffee shop who had the same beard, the same slouch and had the same habit of … Continue reading How to replace people with similar looking people in your life
Eye Stealing Raven and His Friend Todd the Frog
He was a thief by trade and a philosopher by delusion. He usually stole because it made him feel alive, not because he needed shiny things, though, admittedly he did like shiny things. "The world" he once said, dark wings fluttering besides his friend Todd "Belongs to those who dare take a closer look" "You … Continue reading Eye Stealing Raven and His Friend Todd the Frog
Long Way Home
When he was 16, his mom kicked him out of the house"Go find who you are" is all she said.His mother had been everything: parent, mentor, friend. That day, she became the first person to let him go.He took a small bag and an even smaller sense of self and left.The next 25 years he … Continue reading Long Way Home