Maybe we will become that couple on the boat docked a few meters offshore. I can see them now, dancing. I don’t hear any music so I close my eyes, but all I hear is the lapping of the waves. I know they are older than we are because I spoke to them on the […]
Fiction
The Brush
The first weird thing is that I was in the bath at all. It was summer in Perth. But the sky was overcast and it was drizzling. The second weird thing is that, upon close examination of my arms and legs, I discovered tiny clumps of sunscreen in every wrinkle and fold, even in the […]
Name Change
What if today I announced to my children that from now on I would call them different names? The younger one would be Helen, and the older one would be, say, Hazel. They would now be sisters with the same first initial, more matchy-matchy, I would tell them. Beautiful new names for beautiful children, I […]
Merge
“I’ve decided we should adopt.” Travis looks up from his crossword. His wife is on the other side of the living room, perched on the arm of the sofa, clutching her navy blue ceramic mug. She is still wearing her apron. Dinner was three hours ago. “Isn’t this something we should discuss together?” He puts […]
The Scratch
“The scratch is getting better.” “That’s good.” She’s got a three-inch swollen line on her left cheek. The cat. “I really cleaned it. Got all the blood off. Used an alcohol swab and everything.” “That’s good.” “I kind of like it. It gives me character. I’m like Omar.” “As long as it’s not permanent.” He […]