• Chapter thirteen

                Lunch ticked by like the minutes spent in a dentist’s chair—smiles and warm welcomes followed by the pressure of a needle pushing its way through your gums as you wait, praying that it doesn’t burst through the other side of your face. Then somewhere in the middle, you grow numb—mouth hanging open as the

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  • Chapter twelve

                I stood in the driveway for another moment, running through all the words Kyle had said. What was all of that? Had he been mad I had a date? Well, I mean I didn’t have one, but still. I shook my head. There’s no way. I released a sigh and pushed away my thoughts

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  • Chapter eleven

                My eyes were locked on the front door that stood three feet in front of me—the doorknob seeming to pulse in time with my heartbeat. You can do this. I took a step toward the door but found myself frozen again as the past leaked out from around the door. Family dinners spent wedged

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  • Chapter ten

                The fan whirred over me. I think it had made at least 600 laps by now. The blades wobbled slightly, and the base shifted more than it should have. I should run it on low—the landlord said as much when he showed me the house, but there was something satisfying about the noise and

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  • Chapter nine

                Kyle. Kyle was here. Standing in front of me. Staring down at me like he hadn’t been missing for months. I knew it was me that I was seeing reflected back in his eyes, but the shape didn’t feel like me. The me staring back was who I had always been. Kyle’s.             “Hello?”

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  • silence

    Author’s note: Hey everyone! I am about 3 pages into Chapter 9, but due to some interruptions (pun intended), I was not able to finish it this week. So, in the meantime, I’m sharing a poem titled silence. It’s a very personal poem, and I know it’s a bit heavy, but please know, I am

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  • Chapter eight

                I was sitting in the parking lot of The Watershed, the blood from my knuckles draining down the fingers still curled around the leather of the steering wheel. You can do this. My brain had been whispering those four words for the better part of five minutes, but somehow, they weren’t enough to allow

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  • Chapter seven

                Typing out a message to my mom proved far more difficult than I thought it would be. I was on my tenth draft of essentially a long-winded “Hello. How have you been,” when there was a knock at the door. I clicked the lock button and watched the phone screen shift to black, sucking

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  • Chapter six

                Ava left the room still talking about her final three college choices. After the door shut, I sat there for another moment, staring at the clock, trying to shake the ghost of a boy who wasn’t a boy anymore. It was honestly embarrassing the hold Henry still had on me. I was a grown

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  • Chapter five

                It had been five years since I’d seen Henry last. I’d walked across the stage at graduation to the deafening sound of my father’s air horn and my mother’s shrill voice screaming “That’s my daughter,” as I clutched my high school diploma to my chest and smiled. The sound of my mother’s pride tore

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