MAGGIE LEANED AGAINST the wall, the obligatory red Solo cup of warm beer in hand. She had no intention of drinking it. It was a prop, to fend off obnoxious Wall Street boys. Why aren't you drinking, baby? Maggie fought the urge to smile. The funny thing was they thought they were being subtle. Across … Continue reading At a Party
JANE TOUCHED HER neck, checking her pulse. Third time around the lake, and she was keeping steady at 98 bpm. How frustrating. "Push it, girl," she muttered out loud. "You want a skinny ass? Push it. Push it, dammit!" It didn't work. She didn't feel like pushing it, whether she should or not. Maintaining … Continue reading After Work
THE WAITER CAME over the moment she sat down. "Bonsoir, madamoiselle." He assisted with her chair and napkin. "Voulez-vous boire quelque chose?" She wished he could give her a minute to settle. It took courage for a single young woman to eat out alone in Paris. "Oui... une tasse d'eau, si'l vous plait, san gas." … Continue reading Ça, c’est très français.
FUNNY HOW SOME men shut down when it's time to step up. "Greg, do you have the insurance papers?" Suzanne stuck her head in the living room. "Greg? Greg, are you listening?" He stood frozen in front of the picture window. "I'll take that as a no." She ran upstairs to the study and shoved … Continue reading Letting Go
"THEY'RE VERY HIGH." The woman looks at the shoe's heel, unable to hide her delight. "Very high." Considering she's not the one who's buying them, it doesn't matter what she thinks. Still, he has to play the game. "Would you like to try the other?" he asks, offering her the shoe's mate. It's an expensive … Continue reading Shoes
"I WIN AGAIN!" Ruby pushed her hair off her face and yawned. Exhaustion ringed her eyes in dark circles. "You suck at this, Micah." "I do." Micah hid a smile. He had to let her win; if he didn't, she'd throw a fit. It was hard enough travelling unaccompanied, harder still when escorting a petulant … Continue reading On the Train
"WHO'S BIKE IS that out front?" Amelia stifled a yawn and wandered over to the window. "What was that?" "That bike. Right there." Her coworker Molly pointed at an abandoned bike. "See it? Lying there in the middle the sidewalk." Molly had the strongest Long Island accent. Before she came to work here, Amelia thought … Continue reading Who’s Bike is That?
"OH MY GOD, this book is so dark!" The woman - Anna, Audrey, April, whatever her name is - rolls over and pokes me. "Listen... if I’d stopped to think I might not have done it, but fury is a great disregarder of caution." She snorts. "Is disregarder even a word?" I ignore her as … Continue reading 50 Word Thursday
IT WAS TIME to go. "Maggie!" Hank yelled from the parking lot, his voice loud enough to force a flock of seagulls back to the sky. "Let's go. Now." Maggie pretended not to hear. It had been too long since she'd been to the ocean. She'd leave when she was ready. "Maggie! Don't make me … Continue reading Flash Fiction #1
Liz Charnes 