We sat across from eachother. I was nervous about the whol3 blind date thing, and I hadn’t messaged with her much, either. Her messages seeemed tightly written, perfect, almost. I wanted to see who this perfect woman was.

“Hello,” I waved although we were already seated.

She smiled and nodded, fumbling with the menu.

“How are you?” I asked, wondering if she already wanted to leave when she sa...

I really don’t think I’ve heard Charlie say more than 10 words on this trip, and we’ve been gone from home three days! You know what? I’m going to make her talk. I’m going to annoy her into telling me what she’s thinking.

I just need a way to break in. What would get under her skin the same way that her silence gets under mine? I could copy everything she does. Like sit how she does, pretend to ...

She looked at me utterly confused and yet very determined when I opened the door. As if I was the stranger who just knocked on her apartment door and not the other way around. She was very colourfully dressed in clothes that were completely soaked from top to bottom. It had been raining all week.

“Du er sgu da ikke Åse!”

She spoke loudly and looked daringly at me as if I was challenging her to a...

I knew the train ride to would be long, which is why I brought a book and a notepad in my bag along with.

I didnt consider the fact that I would have to be seated next to someone due to the trains full-reaching capacity. This was one of the lower class trains after all, maybe I should have expected it.

Ever the wary kind around people whom I did not know, I observed the man who took the seat b...

The train squealed to a stop and a hiss rose from the tracks, signaling that the doors were about to open. Tracy turned her attention from the window and watched the passengers as they ambled on from the platform and found their seats. A short, sprightly looking woman in her mid 60s sat in one of the seats across from Tracy, placing several red plastic bags on the floor between her feet. They met ...

The tardy bell rang and Ms. Greer smiled as the last of her students hurried into her classroom. She began to close the door behind Annabelle, but felt resistance as she pulled it shut.

“Knock, knock. Happy Monday,” came the familiar nasal tone of Mrs. Anderson, the front office clerk. She had a forced smile on her face that told Ms. Greer that she was absolutely not going to like what happened ...

For the first time in his career as a politician, President Farnsworth had no idea what to do.

First contact with an alien species. It had been decided that only President Farnsworth could pull this off.

“They don’t have any language-translation gadgets like I always see in the movies?” He asked his aides, as he was tying his tie.

“Apparently not,” one aide answered.

“They can hardly be su...

Platters of gooey deviled eggs jostled congealing casseroles on the overladen dining room table. Grandma’s house was as crowded as the table. Aunts and uncles and cousins he’d didn’t remember huddled in groups laughing and eating. Eyes down, Ryan slipped between clusters. He found his dad first drinking brown liquor in the backyard with his Uncle Mitch. Ryan could tell by the set of his father’s s...

As soon as Luisa opened the nursery door, the winged girl sat bolt upright on the bed, scooting back into the corner. Her brown feathers flared as she hissed at Luisa, showing pointed teeth.

It wasn’t as unnerving now as it had been the first time.

“You don’t have to do that.” Luisa stepped into the room. The winged girl’s eyes followed her as she crossed the floor and set the tray on the bedsid...

A: "I feel lonely."

B: "Impossible, you come from a good family. You have good friends. You are constantly surrounded by people. Even now, we speak in a public place."

A: "And yet I still feel lonely."

B: "No. You don't."

A: "I feel... hungry?"

B: "No. We're out to lunch, and I'm paying. Be sure to finish the plate."

A: "Do I feel subtle? Borderline indistinct?"

B: "No. I can see you perfec...