Top-Ranked Stories (Sorted by Average Rating)
September 24, 2021
Acceptance
Woodard Hall was empty. All the university workers were gone for the day, but it didn’t matter whether the building was occupied or not; it always felt empty. The long corridors sprinkled with muted orange lights drained all the energy out of the building, like a dying heart desperately trying ...
October 23, 2023
Treats
The annual office Halloween party was in full effect. The large, open-space office was plastered wall-to-wall with paper bats and plastic pumpkins, and every surface covered in enough candy bowls to give a football team diabetes. Dressed in their vampire capes and witch’s hats, the workers and managers laughed and ...
August 17, 2022
No Reason
The rank aroma of something rotted, like maggot-infested roadkill underneath the blistering summer sun, slams into his nostrils. No, it smells like the spoiled packages of hamburger he discovered in the refrigerator after his mother’s death. Stifling the gag reflex, he waves his arms to dissipate the odor before leaning ...
October 15, 2022
The Real Pinball Wizard
Eight months ago, my life changed forever. I couldn’t tell you what the weather was like that day, what I had for breakfast, or even the first song I heard on the radio before I left the house. In fact, I can’t honestly remember any details of that day before ...
April 7, 2022
Clinical
After lunch, I go back to my living quarters and draw a triangle. Between each corner of the triangle, I write our names out. I am at the top of the triangle. On the bottom two corners, I write Rosie and Kenneth. Rosie and Kenneth hate each other. I like ...
August 13, 2021
Good Eggs
“Summer homes are for rich people, Allen.” I’ve been known to spend money on things that I don’t need. Sometimes it can be hard to determine which products are necessities and which are simply desires. My wife Brittany is usually the one who keeps my head on straight, chiding me ...
January 6, 2021
The Corruption of Hawkswood
If one were to drive southbound from the historic city of Durham, following the winding roads through the old pit villages, you would eventually come to a quiet road, shadowed by the presence of trees. Before long the road will widen to half-reveal a turning on the right, often missed ...
February 14, 2025
Seven Little Gods
When Wendy’s family goes searching for her in a decaying house marked by strange graffiti and unsettling energy, they are drawn into a world ruled by invisible, terrifying forces. As Wendy becomes more consumed by the will of the "little Gods," her family must decide whether to follow their twisted ...
July 16, 2022
Don’t Be Late
“I’m late. I’m late for a very important date. No time to say hello, goodbye, I’m late, I’m late, I’m …..” – The White Rabbit from Alice in Wonderland “…laaate!” thought Bryan as he sped from his third-floor apartment. He pressed the down button at least 20 times as if ...
April 26, 2022
The One In The Mist
Have you ever woken up from a dead sleep in the middle of the night with a crushing obligation sitting on your chest like a bull elephant? No? Me neither. My sleep is never clouded with vivid dreams or horrific nightmares. To me, it is simply a function of resting ...
