They day Christine graduated high school was the same day as her dad’s funeral. He was always calling her stupid. She went to graduation alone.
Fiction
Sleepless Nights
When Momma came home with another man, I tucked the big kitchen knife under my pillow. I’d be ready the next time someone touched me.
Misplaced Blame
Daddy’s cigar smoke wrapped around me like a hug. I’m leaving, doll, he said. I looked from him to my mom. Suddenly, I hated her.
Blurred Lines
That night, Bryce clamped his hand around her throat as he entered her. She hated the feeling, but she loved Bryce. So she let him.
Don’t Judge A Book
One hand rested on my round, quiet belly, and the other clutched a cigarette. You shouldn’t do that, Mrs. Weatherly said. It’s dead, I answered.
Betrayed Or Alone
She said she loved me. When I tried to kiss her at school, she shouted, dike and shoved me away. I learned to prefer loneliness.
End In Sight
Though pain needled my joints, the ninth doctor said, You’re perfectly healthy. As I leaned over the overpass, I wondered if death would be easier.
Split Second
Ruth told Benny to wait while she went to the bathroom. When she finished, he was floating face down in the pool. He never listened.
Burn Away the Pain
When the firefighters carried her from the blazing house, she wept. Let me go back, she begged. They couldn’t rob her of her only solution.
Darkness Begets Darkness
The empty carseat drew all my attention. I never saw the pedestrian. When the police charged me with manslaughter, I thought, yes, that’s exactly it.
