“Mouths” is a fiction story presented in installments. Look for a new chapter on Mondays throughout the summer. (Perhaps you would like to start at the beginning?) Mouths IX: Accusing I am not wearing a shirt, but this is the least of my worries. At least he won’t look at my face. The mouths remain […]
Creative Fiction
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Mouths 8: Explaining
“Mouths” is a fiction story presented in installments. Look for a new chapter on Mondays throughout the summer. (The journey started here.) Mouths VIII: Explaining She passes out three times as I talk. It’s okay. We have time. None of us need to leave anytime soon. My mouths are sated for now. They open and […]
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The Early Tears with Vic Pasternak: Lesson 7 — Lots yet to learn
Driving cab in the summertime is the kind of bullshit you do because you’re hooked on drugs, or in need of a hotline. Nothing goes on. A switch is thrown and the roar of the outgoing graduates is clipped. The money is gone. Still, it will never be slow enough for some people. “Hey, Marty […]
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Mouths 7: Stalling
“Mouths” is a fiction story presented in installments. Look for a new chapter Monday mornings throughout the summer. “Shut the fuck up, Sheila!” I scream at the door. I realize that I shouldn’t draw attention to myself. I breathe. “I’m sorry.” My voice is softer. “Just give me a second. Everything will make sense soon.” […]
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Mouths 6: Stilling
“Mouths” is a fiction story presented in installments. Look for a new chapter each Monday morning throughout the summer. Mouths VI: Stilling The alarm clock flashes a steady stream of banal red numbers at me. Something urgent will happen. The air is thick with tension. Sweat. Vodka. Fear. It is oppressive. Almost insufferable. Something stale […]
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The Early Tears with Vic Pasternak: Lesson 6 — Traffic is the language of Babel
#1. You don’t have to know how the machinery of 30,000 whirring parts makes your car go vroom, but you should consider the physics at play. Velocity, friction, vector relationships and turning radii are all up for consideration. #2. Participation is mandatory. Science confirms this. #3. People live like they drive, and as such we […]
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Mouths 5: Fighting
“Mouths” is a fiction story presented in installments. Look for a new chapter each Monday morning throughout the summer. Mouths V: Fighting I sit on the dirty carpet and examine what the mouths have left of my life. Vodka bottles. Glass shards. Wood splinters. Old woman. Her eyes scream fear. Her mouth remains gagged. I […]
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Mouths 4: Returning
“Mouths” is a fiction story presented in installments. Look for a new chapter each Monday morning throughout the summer. Mouths IV: Returning I return to my building, using the carport. It’s rented by 2B, but I don’t care anymore. I don’t want the old woman to roast. It’s close to 4 p.m. now. My mouths […]
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Mouths 3: Feeding
“Mouths” is a fiction story presented in installments. Look for a new chapter each Monday morning throughout the summer. Mouths III: Feeding They say that you get used to any noise if you live with it for long enough: jackhammers, sirens, alarms. Clocks ticking. Water dripping. I doubt if I will ever become comfortable with […]
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Mouths 2: Hiding
“Mouths” is a fiction story presented in installments. Look for a new chapter each Monday morning throughout the summer. Mouths II: Hiding I wake from dark dreams to the nightmarish sound of the mouths moving in an alien uniformity. The teeth scraping together with regular precision sound like gears. Their moans are not human. I […]
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The Early Tears with Pasternak: Lesson 5 – Municipal as a fireplug and just as pissed on
I’d see her around town a lot back then, a bony woman walking fast in a country headscarf. From a distance you could see she wore her face garishly made up, and I wondered at her story. When I got her aboard the taxi at Campus Amoco, I realized it wasn’t makeup she was wearing. […]
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Mouths 1: Awakening
“Mouths” is a fiction story presented in installments. Look for a new chapter each Monday morning throughout the summer. I: Awakening I feel a sudden jolt and groggily realize that I no longer am in the green meadow with the greedy little pig. It was a dream. I stare into the silent darkness, which is […]
