There she was, my target number 52. It was surprisingly easy to find her. Unlike my previous targets, it didn’t seem like she was trying to hide. She was just sitting on a rock at a park, out in the open. Someone else was sitting next to her, and they were talking. To a regular onlooker, she looked carefree. But I could see her tense demeanor and the way her eyes darted about. She was nervous.

...

_This is a great day to walk to River Park,_thought Rhonda as she put on her socks and

walking shoes. She packed a lunch of a ham sandwich, a banana, and a couple

bottles of water. She put everything in her string bag and walked out the

door.

Arriving at the park about 10 minutes later, she saw the usual

sights--families picnicking along the shore, kids and grown-ups playing

soccer, football, or ...

Jake had quite the eventful morning. He was awoken by a smashing noise somewhere outside of his room. Which caused him to jump out of bed like a surfer who heard the weather forecast said there would be some knarly waves! As he fumbled around putting on his clothes, another noise came from what he had now determined was the kitchen. Like a panther on the prowl he had made his way to the kitchen an...

What could it be? What might they be thinking now?

These were a few questions that occupied our minds since they sat on that bridge.

Well, let me tell you, we are fun filled teens from a desert village and we see tourists like this sometimes a year. And every time, only one question comes to our mind — why would somebody intentionally subject themself to the hardships here!

Anyways, humans are...

“Do you ever question it?”

He leans further backwards.

“No.”

The silence extends between us.

I want to say more, but I sense further probing would be detrimental.

The water of the stream gently flows underneath, accompanying the moment with its constant ripples.

Why does he do this?

“Well, I question it.”

He says nothing.

“I question it because what kind of father abandons his children? M...

I watched them from the grass, hidden from their view.

Not that it mattered anyway. I was behind them.

I was on edge the second she said she was going to meet a friend. When I asked the name of this ‘friend’ she’d responded that his name was Alex. I had followed her to this pond.

Now she and Alex are sharing some donuts and fruit. Watching them share the chocolate glazed and eat strawberries, m...

Day 147, the time, irrelevant. I have been here day after day waiting for the same person to arrive. How is it possible to have been sitting here for this long with still no sign of Mariah. But these two are new. It’s been 16 days since anyone has come to this cross way. I wonder if they knew this was here to begin with. I wonder if they know each other is on the other side. Why is it that ...

she always liked the creek and pond the lake 2 it was always her thing the crickets would sing for her and so would the bullfrogs sumtimes she would catch one and hold it if it was cold she would “ warm it up “ creek was sumwhere where she would stay as a kidd with her dad shes afraid of the ocean has never been in one but she likes the sound she doesnt like talking about stuff that scares her bc...

This year’s drought was rough and I was ravenous with hunger. Days had passed without so much as a morsel of fruit - which wasn’t my favorite. But if a pear was to drop in front of me right now, there would be no hesitancy to consume. My feet were tired from days of walking without finding any sustenance, and my eyes strained to see something, anything, in the distance. I could begin to feel my bo...

“So you don’t eat fish?” Rylee asks, leaning forward on the log.

“I don’t eat fish. I already told you,” Ravi rejects, leaning away and making a face.

Minnows swim around their bare feet, tickling the soles as they dart around, hiding. Rylee smiles, watching them play.

“I don’t like fish much either. Once we went to this buffet, super expensive and shit. I found a glassy eyeball in the fish mea...