The Incognito Me I am beginning to like the smell of chlorine. Before this trip, the only picture it brought to mind was scrubbing floors or the stinging smell of hospital corridors. But now it smells like leisure: of early morning swims in the pool before practice or warm afternoons sitting by the water before…
Category: Realistic
Reading to Mrs. Smith
Reading to Mrs. Smith It was my first day and I didn’t want to be late. I was seventeen and volunteering to read to shut-ins in their homes. I felt every bump of the rough pavement up into my nerve-jangled stomach as I drove my mom’s car along Cedar Road, looking for number 460. The…
What is the Meaning of Life? Food? Yes!
What’s the Meaning of Life? Food? Yes! All my life goes around food. I bake to entertain. In 2020, when quarantine started, I was bored. We all sat at home for about a month without going outside except going to our garden. At that moment I started trying activities: started sewing and finished by bringing…
Finding Koimee
Finding Koimee I was just getting off my knees after looking under another garbage-strewn bench, when the flashlight beam fell on me. “Can I help you, sir.” It wasn’t a question. “Um, hi, sorry,” I said, shielding my eyes. “Just looking for Koimee.” “Is that your dog?” “No, he’s a frog.” “A frog.” I sighed….
Love Yourself
Love Yourself I have finished my dance club and finally got my diploma. It’s hard to accept because I’ve had a lot of experience both physically and mentally. At the age of 11, I was overweight, so I heard a lot of words about my weight from classmates. After that, I had an inferiority complex,…
Limited Sky
Limited Sky “You’re applying for a game developer position?” The manager flipped through my application in confusion. “Yes.” “Your background is law, though.” “I am a lawyer currently, but I’ve been studying coding for several years. If you look at my portfolio—” “No, it’s great.” The manager looked uncomfortable. “I’m just afraid you’re a bit…
Hotel Limbo
Hotel Limbo At least two of the hotel’s 4 stars must have been photoshopped. Towels worn, dirty bathroom, shampoo bottles refilled. I sat on the bed, frantically searching flights. I had 36 hours to travel 2700 miles across Central Asia to make my next connection after my last flight had been cancelled. COVID Ugh, I’d…
Water is Self
Water is Self Olivia stepped into the small restaurant, letting the sound of Korean conversation wash over her. Everything was so wonderfully exotic. Finally, after years of planning she had made it to Korea. COVID had given her plenty of time to do her research. She had always loved K-pop and she devoured every new…
Puggle
The puggle felt the sun’s warmth seeping down through the high canopy. He pulled himself out of the burrow ahead of his mother. His mother was digging through the dirt just behind him. The puggle turned and nosed in the fresh dirt, sensing an earthworm just below the surface. He reached towards it but his…
Muse on Monday – January 17, 2022, featuring “The Birthday Present”
Happy Monday! It is Martin Luther King Jr. Day in the US, so many schools and businesses are closed today. Scroll down to read a story based on last week’s prompt: The Birthday Present, by Lyailya. This week’s prompt is based on the picture below. It was taken in a hotel in Lisbon, Portugal. Write…
The Green-Walled Treehouse 