Psychological
The Broken Umbrella
Part 1: The Inheritance of Broken Things The umbrella was the ugliest thing Elara had ever seen. It was buried in her grandmother’s attic under a mountain of heartache, its canvas faded to the color of dust, its ribs twisted, and its tip rusted into a blunt spear.
By Habibullah6 months ago in Fiction
When the Call Came at Midnight: Chapter Four
My name is Elena. For a moment, hearing it in my own head felt strange, as if I had forgotten it ever mattered. But standing between two men bound by secrets, with rain slashing at my skin and the sea roaring below, I clung to it like an anchor. Elena. I was still me, even if nothing else felt steady.
By Saba Writes6 months ago in Fiction
Gentle Cycle Only
People bring them in under their coats like wet smuggled birds, such as the person who said something that split a room, the smell of rain on nappy street, and despite their father only telling his son about cries of anger. This is just an example. With their arms crossed to prevent them from spitting out, I approach the counter with the plastic smile my mom gave me. The smile signifies: You are not the antecedent.' You aren't alone. Also: We can help.
By Osman Ahmed6 months ago in Fiction
Saved by A Bark: A Little Noir Fiction
Every story has a heartbeat of its own..mine often start with paws on the floor, demanding their breakfast. Greedy as they are, they also leave unexpected lessons in their wake. We are sometimes saved by nothing more than a bark.
By Michelle Liew Tsui-Lin6 months ago in Fiction
The Last Mixtape
With a loud sound, the shovel bit into the damp earth with force, as if my heart had been crushed to its core. Ten years. The time capsule we had hidden beneath was covered in the bravery of eighteen-year-olds a decade ago. Me, Leo, and Sarah. This was the day we made an oath to open it all together. While Leo was designing buildings that etched the clouds in Tokyo, Sarah disappeared without him. We buried our dreams two years prior in a waterproof ammo box, but then the accident happened.
By Daniel Blake6 months ago in Fiction
Eyelens: The World Beneath Sight
The first time Kieran slipped the Eyelens into his eye, he expected nothing more than sharper vision. He had read the promotional tagline—“See the world as it truly is”—and assumed it was just clever marketing. After all, every breakthrough in optics for the last century had promised the same thing.
By Princess Ladly6 months ago in Fiction
The House That Wrote Letters Back
When Lydia first stepped into the weathered seaside house, it smelled faintly of salt and old wood. The realtor had called it charming with potential, but to Lydia, it felt like something else entirely—like the house had been waiting. She had come here after her divorce, tired of the city, tired of voices that promised comfort but carried nothing but noise. The ocean was meant to be her quiet, her restart. But the very first morning, she discovered something that turned her solitude into a mystery: a folded letter on the kitchen table in her own looping handwriting.
By Musawir Shah6 months ago in Fiction
Homecoming
I swam from the wreck towards the jagged peaks of a black-emerald isle some fifty metres off. When the sea shallowed I walked, knee-deep in the briny surf. Behind me green flames tore from the sailboat; I heard it crack and hiss like birchwood until the sea rushed in and drove it under.
By Linden Carr6 months ago in Fiction
