I come in here every weekend. Sometimes twice. I make up an excuse to go the second time. The first time I do have to run errands  as part of my routine. The second, so I can see him. It’s so pathetic having a crush on someone. Never mind someone far younger than I. Never mind… Continue reading The Shop

I have spent a lot of the last decade in a funhouse of grief. I hate funhouses. Mostly they bore me at the fair but you keep going in and out with your small child who finds the mirrored room a blast and the incessant clown music charming. I find none of that stimulating. I… Continue reading Grief Town

Once in a lifetime.  You never saw your power. You never saw your strength. You didn’t even hide it. You didn’t know it was there.  You took the crumbs that others gave you. Thanked them for their time. You were so kind in turn you knew no other way.  You didn’t see the smiles that… Continue reading Once in a Lifetime

I’m excited. I’ve been waiting all day. I didn't have work and am overprepared. I shuffle my feet now in the station, knowing it's a bit much. Maybe I’m too done. My hair is a little too done. Maybe I’m too much. I don’t know. I’m excited. I said that already. There you are. I… Continue reading Promises, Promises

I like pencils. Real old-fashioned HB pencils. Pencils that go in the crank sharpener. Pencils that grind into the perfect point. Pencils that give a crisp ‘tick’ on a piece of paper. None of this mechanical pencil stuff. A mechanical pencil is not going to hold up your hair in the middle of the day.… Continue reading On Point

CW: NSFW Frantic, fumbling, tousled, breathless with want … You press me down to the mattress and help me roll over. My panties are at my knees, my bra is only unhooked, it loosely dangling across my chest, garters, and only one stocking. My hands are bound. I should feel mortified that I’m on display… Continue reading Midday

Hand out, palm up. Put your hand in mine. You might be at the store, at the movies, at school in front of your friends, in the car, or at the movies. Almost any time and any place. Put your hand in mine. His hands were always covered in bruises and often swollen from work.… Continue reading Hold my Hand

CW: Parental Death Honestly, sometimes I forget you aren’t here. I forget you both aren’t. But you especially. I’ll see something in the house that needs fixing and think, “oh I’ll ask … .” But there’s no one to ask about that noise or the loose thingamajig. There’s no one to tell about the sale… Continue reading You Went Away

**This is fictional non fiction** CW: abuse Amiable silence. A cup of tea. Television in the background. A book or sewing nearby. Absorbed in your own little world and content with the space you’re in. And so are they. They - the other body taking up residence in this quiet cocoon. You can talk, I… Continue reading Silent Treatment

At this time last summer it was hot. Blistering, I can tell climate change is real, hot. The kind of dry heat that sticks in your lungs like sauna steam. It was uncomfortable. Everywhere you looked, everything was uncomfortable. The dogs, the kids, the warped door frames. No one was happy. I was miserable. And… Continue reading Little Bird