Excerpt
The Letter I Was Never Meant to Read
It was a quiet evening when I stumbled upon the letter. The house was unusually still, the kind of silence that presses on your chest and makes you feel like something is about to change. I hadn’t been looking for secrets; I was simply searching for an old notebook in the wooden chest my mother kept locked in her room. But fate has a strange way of revealing truths when we least expect them.
By Nadeem Shah 4 months ago in Fiction
Under the Crimson Sky
The crimson sky stretched endlessly above, its fiery glow spilling across the horizon like blood on sand. For most villagers, it was just another sunset, another day slowly slipping into the night. But for Ayaan, the sight of that sky was both a curse and a reminder—a curse of the past he could never completely bury, and a reminder of the fight he could no longer run away from.
By Nadeem Shah 4 months ago in Fiction
One Unchecked Box. Top Story - October 2024.
"Republished" because it was the only way to add the embed for the newly recorded audio version of this story due to the Top Story badge. Plus it serves as a nice, informal announcement of the podcast's revival for another season (go subscribe!):
By Stephen A. Roddewig4 months ago in Fiction
The Forest of the Forgotten
They had barely made it fifty yards from the clearing when Amnity stumbled, her canvas backpack suddenly feeling like it weighed a hundred pounds. The Glowing Imp Root pulsed inside its glass container, and with each throb, the forest around them seemed to... shift.
By Parsley Rose 4 months ago in Fiction
AI for the Mind
The Rise of Digital Therapy Tools In recent years, mental health has become a central topic across Europe, with rising awareness about depression, anxiety, and burnout. Traditionally, access to therapy has been limited by long waiting times, high costs, and stigma. This is where artificial intelligence (AI) has stepped in, offering new ways to make mental health support more accessible.
By Muhammad Ibrahim5 months ago in Fiction
The Day the World Stopped Using Mirrors
It began on a morning like any other. People rose from their beds, shuffled to their bathrooms, and discovered that their mirrors no longer worked. Not cracked, not clouded, not broken — simply blank. Glass still shined, but it reflected nothing. You could press your palm against it and see only the dim outline of your hand through the glass, like pressing against a window at night.
By arsalan ahmad5 months ago in Fiction
The Café Where Time Stood Still
The rain was relentless that afternoon, washing the streets in silvery streaks that reflected neon signs and hurried umbrellas. I ducked into a narrow alley, hoping for a shortcut, when I saw it: a small café tucked between two tall buildings, almost as if it had been hiding from the world. Its sign read simply “Café Temps.”
By arsalan ahmad5 months ago in Fiction
