by Tony W.
By: IO
A girl wanted to be an archeologist. To find old things and have them be new again.
She hated the feeling of dirt on the palms of her hands.
A girl wanted to be a professional flautist. To sit first-chair and play in a symphonic orchestra is one of the world’s great cities.
She gave up music after failing to produce more than a squawking sound from her recorder.
A girl wanted to be a CEO. To sit at the head of a conference table and tell everyone else what to do.
She fell asleep in every business class she took.
A girl wanted to be.
But she gave up.
by K. Osorio-Teamer
I was a ranger at the state park. Or maybe I just worked in the gift shop. All I know is, I was wearing a uniform and the family nearly being attacked by a bear was looking to me for help. All redheads, the three of them. I called them to run inside the building that was behind me. As the ginger woman, child, and man run past me, I follow, knowing it’s faster than me. I rush to close the door, and I can feel its rough fur jutting through the door crack. I couldn’t close it. I couldn’t close it. It’s too strong.
I woke up pushing my boyfriend off the bed. Thankfully, he was in a deep sleep, and much like the dream, this bear was too big for me to move. The next morning, before I could tell him about my state ranger nightmare, he hit me with, “Boo, I had a dream I was a bear last night.” His wide eyes looked at me through the reflection of the mirror as he brushed his teeth. With a mouthful of suds, he muffled, “I was chasing the Weasleys into some campgrounds or something.” I sat on the toilet. “Aren’t you forgetting something?” He pointed at me with his toothbrush.
“You’re not gonna believe me, but…” I told him my version of the dream as I pulled my pants down to pee.
That was the first time we dreamt together. We thought it was a coincidence. Maybe what we watched on tv influenced us in the same way, but I didn’t remember watching anything with bears in it. Maybe one of us was talking in our sleep and the other heard it. We were fascinated and hoping it would happen again.
***
I was running across balconies and up and down stairs. This site was under construction. The men in hardhats were chasing me. I had to get out of here, but I didn’t know how. I just kept running and feeling the steps behind me. At the top of the stairs, I see him. I didn’t know I was looking for him until I found him. He grabbed my hand and we kept running. As we reached another set of stairs, we were confronted by construction workers on all sides. Behind them came a laugh. “You can’t get away. You’re both coming with me.”
My companion squeezed my hand. “We have to jump. It’s the only way to wake up.” I knew we wouldn’t survive the fall, but as I looked back, a tall figure appeared from behind the hard hat crew. His smile was wide and sinister. My partner leaped over the bar first. He looked at me as he fell. I followed. I watched him descend and hit the ground. Shortly after, I hit something hard and our eyes opened. We looked at each other in fear.
by S.L.Jordan
How did I get here? Zip-tied to a hospital bed. They tried making me comfortable, but I took advantage of every moment I could. After the last incident, the nurse staff removed the soft chest strap, replaced them with zip ties. Tight. The delicate skin of my wrist scraped raw with friction. My left hand was bandaged tightly in bright white gauze with a spec of red where my index finger used to be.
I was cursed with beauty. Yes, cursed in a world where beauty was the sought after commodity.
Author’s Note: I missed last week due to unexpected circumstances. While flipping through my W.I.P folder I ran across this snippet. I remember what I wanted to do with this, and reading it again excited me. I honestly LOVE this little blurb here. It leaves so much to the imagination, while sparking it at the same time. Don’t be surprised if you see this again.
biSKITs & gravy 