A man says he feels incompetent. He feels “less”, he says. “Less than others obviously,” and his mind runs ahead of him, yet he backtracks to quickly add the words he was already skipping, “but that’s only the outside world and so it doesn’t matter.” and what he really wants to say is: “less than […]
moreMy playlist coughs up an old song to me. It took me straight back to that moment I stood in front of him, studying his reaction. I hadn’t known what to say to him as he walked in. We had argued so many times, exchanged so many words that we no longer knew which were […]
moreThe man who’s dog diedis in the take-out pizza place. Wherever I see him, he’s always there first. He is waiting. I mention that I saw all the kitchen staff inside the restaurant. They are eating. “Oh are they?” he says, “I see. I was wondering about that. I’ve been here for some ten minutes […]
moreShe sits across from her mother, making eye-contact sometimes, but not purposefully. When she does, it is by chance. She means nothing by it. While in turn, her mother searches her eyes. Tries to hold them sometimes. She knows this. She wonders why she won’t grant her mother the illusion of intimacy. She tries once, […]
moreThe 20-yr-old guy who works in my favourite coffeeshop looks and speaks like most 2nd generation Moroccan kids in the city. His shoulders are bent forward, his dark eyes are droopy and friendly. He is shy, at least to me, and our topic of conversation is usually the weather. His name is George. You’d think […]
moreThey walk in the park, side by side. The air between them is tangibly tense. They must not touch, nor look at each other. Just walk. And talk, a little. She wears men’s plaid trousers. They are grey. The belt that holds it up is high in her waist. Her shoes look like those of […]
moreShe shows up in front of our car. We are about to leave, my sister and I. She looks confused, is what I think. She is almost 80. She asks whether we’re leaving or arriving, or are we the people she heard in the garden next door? The ones she didn’t dare disturb? Leaving, we […]
moreI am a man in my fifties. Doing all right – one should always give some and take some in life. I look good, if I may say so myself. The benefits of discipline, which I have in me, it’s a family trait. Head strong and powerful. Maybe my career isn’t where it’s supposed to […]
moreWhen my husband and I separated, it was a sunny month. I was outside a lot feeling revived. Suddenly, my world had enough oxygen to spare. It had vast open skies. I could imagine what a bird must feel like, soaring through them, viewing the world from above. The people closest to me would frown […]
moreWhen he came home, she was hanging from the door. He knew the moment his key turned in the lock. There was a weight in the air, and it wasn’t the summer heat. It stuck to his palate on breathing in. He called her name. He never called her name. She was always there, ready […]
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