When I was a kid, my stepfather asked me what I wanted to be when I grow up. “A magician,” I answered quickly with worldwide clarity. He huffed at that answer. “That ain’t a job, son. Wearing makeup and doing a little dance at parties ain’t...
I keep hearing them crackling; I can’t see them, but I hear them. At first, I thought it was just a distant wolf howling or my imagination playing up, but now I’m certain that they’re here — somewhere amid the trees — maybe watching me,...
“Do not go outside! Ignore all cries for help, no matter how human they sound!” shouted Alex’s dad. He pulled the cellar door over and paused to look back. “And lock this door behind me.” The door slammed shut. Alex locked it, walked down the stairs...
“The devil doesn’t come dressed in a red cape and pointy horns. He comes as everything you’ve ever wished for.” – Tucker Max Chapter 1: The Penthouse Thomas stared out over New York from the 34th floor of Manhattan Dynamics Corporate Center, amused at how he could look...
It was late evening. The sun was dipping in the sky, but the dark had not claimed the night just yet. Lynsey did not agree with keeping the kids out that late. The next day was a school day after all, but Sam had persuaded...
You’re probably like me, skeptical of all things unexplained. Never in my life have I believed anything that doesn’t have a logical explanation, even if it means I have to string together the most tenuous logic just to make something reasonable. This is me. Why...
I woke up at 3 AM to someone singing through my window. Her voice sounded so close – just inches from my open window. But when I peered out, I didn’t see anyone there. I don’t even remember opening my window, to be honest. All I remember...
We’d been driving around Texas for a while. Clayton, Tom and I had recently graduated, so we had no destination. We were just there to dick around and create some memories until we had to snap back to real life. At one point, Tom had gotten...
Tom Strand had to pee. Sixty-four ounces of gas station root beer sloshed in his gut, disrupting the constant thoughts of his mother. The problem was Tom hadn’t seen a rest stop for nearly an hour, and dusk was beginning to settle over the Louisiana...
yourfaceyourporn.mov My wife tells me she’s cheating on me about halfway through dinner. I work my way through the potatoes, the beans, and most of the meat before replying. “Who?” “That doesn’t matter.” It very much does matter, I think. I imagine a 6’4, muscular, chiseled Greek God of a man...
My husband went overseas as part of the military for a few years. The entire time I anxiously awaited his return. I constantly wondered if I would ever get a phone call notifying me that he would never come home. It was strange being alone...
In places where the very old traditions still hold, August is known as “the ghost month.” Hungry ghosts are said to roam the streets and hillsides, especially at night and especially when things are quiet. Some say that hungry ghosts are created when someone innocent...
Most children say they want to run away from home but few ever do it. My brother Joey was definitely in the latter category, using the excuse of freedom and independence to constantly break our parents’ rules. He was a dreamer, an adventurer, someone that refused...
I had no idea there were so many debilitating phobias. There are those that are terrified of right angles, Mexican food, the letter R, the metric system, and even a miserable few that fear Wednesdays, becoming incapacitated every hump-day. There is even a phobia of...
I remember the first time I woke up. I didn’t know where I was or who I was. There were no memories of where I came from or what was happening to me. But there were bright white lights and maybe a dozen men in...
I never thought that dying would save my life. But then death has always been a funny son-of-a-bitch. Three weeks ago I made an appointment to see my regular doctor about an annoying cough that wouldn’t go away. It got so bad I swore that Gary,...
I found out about him through a friend. I guess that’s how most people find out about him. I guess it’s sort of awful, if you think about it. It would make more sense if your worst enemy told you about him. His name is Robbie....
Have you ever looked up at the moon at night and dreamed of a better life? Maybe wished for love or simply looked for inspiration? It’s amazing, isn’t it, such a magnificent celestial body just hanging in the sky, one we’ve lived with since the...
The carpet smells of decay and mud as I flatten my face against the floor in an attempt to hide under our queen-sized bed. An incessant banging at the door resonates through my brain, feeling like I’m being impaled with an iron spike. Each knock slams...
Henry never believed the stories. A marketing trick, that’s all they were, meant to lure tourists who wanted to be fooled. That’s what he told the curator, in so many words, during his job interview. The curator gave Henry a tour of the museum just after...
