family

The Last Light in the Arcade
The arcade smelled like popcorn. He fed his last token into the game, the old racing cabinet that had been sucking quarters since before he was born.
By Justin Buzzard4 months ago in Fiction
The Weight of Empty Chairs
The kitchen smelled of burnt toast and yesterday’s coffee. He sat at the head of the table, staring at the four empty chairs that used to hold his entire world.
By Justin Buzzard4 months ago in Fiction
11:47. AI-Generated.
The last train left at 11:47 p.m., carrying everyone except Maya. She stood alone on the platform beneath the flickering lights of Ashbourne Station, clutching a letter she had sworn never to open again. Rain tapped against the rusted roof while distant thunder rolled across the sleeping town.
By Waleed khan4 months ago in Fiction
The Whispering Train. AI-Generated.
Rain tapped softly against the old windows of the tiny railway station in the forgotten town of Black Hollow. The station had only one bench, one flickering lantern, and one rule everyone knew:
By Waleed khan4 months ago in Fiction
Thank You For Having a Heart. Runner-Up in You Had to Be There. Content Warning.
“Thank you for having a heart,” she says, finding it and piercing through it. Not in a way that’s painful. I had grown accustomed to that feeling. This was different. It was a burning similar to the delayed sensation you feel when you slice yourself with a particularly sharp blade.
By Jesse Lee4 months ago in Fiction
Color of Divide part one. Content Warning.
This is a fictional story about Forbidden Love between two lovers. Mirabella is from Maravelle Heights, a wealthy neighborhood and Kaden is from South Lydell, the other side of the working class neighborhood. The Lydell River separates the two cities.
By Vicki Lawana Trusselli 4 months ago in Fiction
New Year's Resolutions
New Year's Resolutions One. I knew this was going to be it. I wouldn’t have any more opportunities after this. I built up my willpower and forced the door open. It smelt like ink and men’s cologne, the faint sound of buzzing made me shiver.
By Leah Suzanne Dewey4 months ago in Fiction
Wincing
Start from the beginning and read the entire saga: "Carla! It's Roger, are my girls there?" "Yes, yes. They're safe," Carla assured him. "They are playing out in the pool with my girls."
By A. J. Schoenfeld4 months ago in Fiction
Ruby Reads. Top Story - May 2026.
🎶I wanna love you…and treat you right🎶 Sorry, but I just can’t stop singing. I am beyond excited because my only son just did something amazing. He published his first book. I truly can’t express enough how proud I am of him. When my son, Joe was a little boy I used to make him and my oldest daughter, Rudy bring home books from both the city and school library and have them read them to the whole family every night before bed.
By Joe Patterson4 months ago in Fiction
The Rope of Ashes
Once there lived at the foot of a mountain a poor farmer and his aged, widow mother. They owned a bit of land that supplied them with food. They both led a happy, peaceful and humble life.
By Kamran khan4 months ago in Fiction
How Two Immigrants Carried the Weight of America So Their Son Wouldn’t Have To
When my father first saw San Francisco, he thought the city looked wounded. Fog swallowed the harbor as factory smoke drifted over the waterfront like bruises across the sky. Ship horns groaned through the darkness. Men shouted in languages he did not recognize. Nothing felt stable. Even the buildings seemed temporary, as though the city itself had been assembled too quickly.
By Anthony Chan4 months ago in Fiction
Wrestling
Start from the beginning and read the entire saga: The clock on the wall clicked loudly. Roger glared at it, annoyed by the sound almost as much as by the placement of the hands on its face. Almost two and they still hadn't taken her for the scan. It had been two and a half hours since the doctor had called to say he didn't think Helen should drive herself home. Two hours and fifteen minutes since the nurse at the dermatologist had helped him lift Helen into a wheelchair and push her out to the car. It had been two hours since he had raced into the emergency room, begging someone to help him bring what used to be his wife into the building. It had been an hour and forty-five minutes since they wheeled her into the exam room. Over an hour since the doctor had confirmed she had suffered a severe concussion and he needed to get a CT Scan to check for bleeding and other concerns.
By A. J. Schoenfeld4 months ago in Fiction