Short Story

“ Are you sure we ain’t pretending like we did the other times?”, asked a boy.

“Very well. They are all ash and bone in the Philadelphia Town Hall.” George said with a faint grin.

“You know not everything you hear is true?” she questioned, her eyes betraying her true meaning of what she was asking.

Rudy had a lot to learn about reading. Meredith half listened to his voice at the back of the crowd as she swiped left, left, left. She'd heard him read it so many times she had it memorized. He should be toning it down though. People wanted to co-create the emotional experience.

Mh'ale wasn't like the other stars. He was dark, cold, with no light of own to brighten his way through life. The others, so beautiful and radiant and brimming with energy, had no love for the freakish thing that inhabited the Nothing with them. Mh'ale envied and despised them in equal measure, and would weep and wail miserably when they taunted him, the tears puddling and pooling all around. The stars paid no heed to his misery; they were too perfect to cry, and didn't understand why the ugly little star was drowning himself. He only ever felt happy when he was bathed in light, but no matter how hard he begged, the stars refused to share the gifts that came to them so naturally. They teased and taunted him, allowing slight flickers

"This is the last step to your initiation. You must jump from this tower" said the tall slender man wearing a grey trench coat similar to those in the Matrix.

The group concluded that, at nearly five-past, the gnats would have to go hungry and they filed out of the booth. They slipped past Evan without much more than a cursory word-- whether the presence of two known staff members assuaged him or it was just in his nature to be completely unperturbed by a quintet of off-the-clock individuals stepping confidently past the Employees Only sign was unclear.

Black, all he could see, among the ever encroaching darkness of night. Numb, all he could feel as scenes of death unfolded around him. “Go through first!” He shouted to his men, as they scrambled blindly toward cover. The screams of his men mingled with the sounds of the firefight created a cacophony that seemed like it would never end. The second wave of gunfire would soon ensue, leaching the land of life in one foul swoop. Despite this, he felt calm, knowing it would all end soon, and he would finally be taken to gates of heaven and accepted into god's loving embrace. He understood that he was young, but the war had seemingly aged him decades. No one would truly understand him, and he didn’t want them to understand, for that would mean

I hesitated before responding and I uttered these words “tell them I am not available.” She hesitated and said ok I will. The phone call ended and I remember looking out the window waiting to see if they had left and they did. I was able for a minute to catch my breath and gain my composure. The phone rang again it was my aunt downstairs. I reluctantly answered and it was my aunt again stating to me that the police left a number to call and I need to respond in 24 hours or I was going to be arrested. I responded to the number and the police detective who was also a D.E.A Agent told me that I needed to come in and talk to them right away. I found the courage to do so and drove to the State Police Barracks. I remember walking in feeling a

"I'm glad you agreed to meet with me," Mac started, nervously. In a long list of ways this could possibly turn out, a lot of them were very, very bad.

A content smile was an immediate reaction to the quip directed at him as he readily turned heel and followed after his roommate, but skillful digits made sure to click the lock in a swift movement as a precaution that would hopefully ensure no intruders were there to greet them upon returning home. Lifting a delicate, well-sculpted brow, he didn’t bother to suppress the slightly startled laughter that slipped passed his lips at the response to his casual inquiry. Keeping his gaze steady, yet light-hearted Rhys removed the obstructive candy he treasured with a resounding pop and dangled it loosely between two firm fingers out of reflex. “Guess the cats out of the bag.” A teasing tone made the comment an off-handed one, and the glinting

Ambassador Pryce strode purposefully across the open walkways which meandered between each building of the Capital. His destination was the Senate Chamber, where the Senate met with ambassadors like him, petitioning them on matters of interstellar policy and law. The structure’s dome rose in majestic solitude above any nearby buildings and monuments. The tranquil beauty of the vast parkland ecosystem surrounding Pryce did little to calm his nerves, various scenarios of how the next few sensitive hours could play out repeating in his mind.

"Hank?" I knocked on the open door, poking my head to see the lanky brunette boy huddled over his desk. He was working away at whatever it was he was so keen on finishing.

The rest of the evening to tried to come up with excuses to avoid having to spend much of the night with Sirius Black and his group of horrid friends. You tried everything, you mustered up all of your acting skills and took to the hospital wing, attempting to convince Madame Pomfrey that you were seriously ill; she, of course, saw right through you, and you left the wing feeling defeated and shameful. You even went as far as to provoke Professor McGonagall, hoping that she’d give you detention for the evening, but all you got was a scolding and a 2 foot essay.

“Ugh... what did I tell you about talking, Tilly?” Murray said with an air of superiority. “Thank God we don 't have to listen to any story come out of you tonight.”